Triad Population Statistics

[krazeeboi]

City Hall in Greensboro does not want to see Winston-Salem take over Greensboro's position as the largest city in the Triad. Its just part of the constant battling between the two cities which is quite common in other multi-city metros like Greenville and Spartanburg.

Nah, it's much different in the Upstate where it's clear that Greenville is the most populous and dominant city of the region. That's not the case in the Triad where Greensboro and Winston-Salem are essentially on equal footing.

[cityboi]

Nah, it's much different in the Upstate where it's clear that Greenville is the most populous and dominant city of the region. That's not the case in the Triad where Greensboro and Winston-Salem are essentially on equal footing.

Well thats good to hear. A friend of mind who lives in SC said Spartanburg was envious of Greenville and he made it seem like some intercity rivalry going on down there. I guess he was exaggerating a bit.

[twincity]

Thats one group's estimate based on growth trends. The most trusted source, besides the census bureau, is the state demographer which has W-S still in 4th place. These numbers were released 2 months ago.

3 Greensboro 268,917 +5649

4 Winston-Salem 235,073 +6711

5 Durham 234,140 +5778

Total Growth 2000-2009

Winston-Salem +49,297

Durham + 47,105

Greensboro + 45,026

Urban Growth 2000-2009

Durham 31,874

Winston-Salem 24,771

Greensboro 20,147

[cityboi]

Thats one group's estimate based on growth trends. The most trusted source, besides the census bureau, is the state demographer which has W-S still in 4th place. These numbers were released 2 months ago.

3 Greensboro 268,917 +5649

4 Winston-Salem 235,073 +6711

5 Durham 234,140 +5778

Total Growth 2000-2009

Winston-Salem +49,297

Durham + 47,105

Greensboro + 45,026

Urban Growth 2000-2009

Durham 31,874

Winston-Salem 24,771

Greensboro 20,147

Greensboro already at about 268,000 or 275,000 by those figures? These are clearly different estimates. Based on these estimates, Greensboro is creeping up on 300,000. But regardless everyone goes by the census data whether its accurate or not. When companies are looking at areas for relocation, they go by the census numbers. I guess the U.S. Census needs to start being more accurate.

[krazeeboi]

Well thats good to hear. A friend of mind who lives in SC said Spartanburg was envious of Greenville and he made it seem like some intercity rivalry going on down there. I guess he was exaggerating a bit.

Any smaller city is going to be somewhat jealous of a larger one at least twice its size. It might be viewed as a "rivalry" only from the perspective of Spartanburg, much like any supposed rivalry between Charlotte and Atlanta is mostly in the minds of Charlotteans.

[twincity]

Greensboro is at 268,000 for 2009. The +5649 was the number of residents added between 2008 and 2009. Greensboro could very well be 270,000+ today. We'll know soon.

W-S's population has been disputed for the past few years. I almost dont know who to believe. Durham...I have a feeling is being undercounted.

[DCMetroRaleigh]

Besides federal allotment of funds based on official Census figures, are there are substantive implications for a city being designated third, fourth, fifth, etc largest in a state, beyond mere bragging rights on a message boards?

[cityboi]

Durham has been out growing Winston-Salem and Greensboro over recent years so it doesn't surprise me if Durham is being under counted. I think rank is more symbolic then anything. Cities like to use ranking as bragging rights and strategically attracting economic growth. In Greensboro's case it puts the city's name at the top of the combined MSA so Greensboro's name would be seen more frequently on national lists. In fact some metro rankings in national lists, Winston-Salem and High Point are left out all together and it just lists "Greensboro" as the name for he Triad.

[cityboi]

Both Winston-Salem and Durham have been outpacing Greensboro in growth, as seen in my initial post. That 3rd place slot will be up for grabs sooner than you think.

Ranking is pretty important in my opinion. Its in a city's nature (CVB) to brag about their strengths to attract tourists jobs and residents. Robust growth and a high state and national population ranking are bragged about quite often.

I can picture NC resembling a Texas or Florida in the distant future.

Ranking is used for a number of purposes so clearly it has it benefits. I presonally think Greensboro will be number 3 for a good while. If any city knocks Greensboro to number 4, it would be Durham. There is a difference between Greensboro's populational growth and Durham's. Greensboro seems to grow mainly through annexation where in Durham much of the growth comes from people moving into the city. I dont see Winston surpassing Greensboro anytime soon because there is plently of land for Greensboro to annex to keep its lead in population. Winston is getting boxed in and there is only so much land to annex because Foryth County is geographically smaller than Guilford and a number of communities have incorporated around the city.

Growth rates are typically related to job growth and quality of life. So it will be interesting to see what happens with Greensboro's growth rate as new jobs come online (FedEx, HondaJet, Amercan Express,future jobs, ect).

[twincity]

Durham has been out growing Winston-Salem and Greensboro over recent years so it doesn't surprise me if Durham is being under counted. I think rank is more symbolic then anything. Cities like to use ranking as bragging rights and strategically attracting economic growth. In Greensboro's case it puts the city's name at the top of the combined MSA so Greensboro's name would be seen more frequently on national lists. In fact some metro rankings in national lists, Winston-Salem and High Point are left out all together and it just lists "Greensboro" as the name for he Triad.

Both Winston-Salem and Durham have been outpacing Greensboro in growth, as seen in my initial post. That 3rd place slot will be up for grabs sooner than you think.

Ranking is pretty important in my opinion. Its in a city's nature (CVB) to brag about their strengths to attract tourists jobs and residents. Robust growth and a high state and national population ranking are bragged about quite often.

I can picture NC resembling a Texas or Florida in the distant future.

[NCMike1981]

I think Durham will have a bit of a difficult time surpassing Greensboro if Greensboro continues spreading it's borders based on mass annexation. Durham really doesn't have much room to spread out due to it's compact nature, although the northern half of the county is remarkably rural I think there may be development restrictions up there. Also since northern Durham has managed to avoid the interstate loop/highway bypass system NC is so fond of that area hasn't experienced much suburban highway sprawl (like 440 and 540 in Raleigh for instance). I'm really not as familiar with Winston as I've never lived further west in NC then Hillsborough so Greensboro was as far west I'd go to regularly but I always recall thinking Durham and Winston were about on the same scale. I remember thinking as a kid that Greensboro and Raleigh were closer in population then now (looks like in 1980 Greensboro was larger actually) but I think Raleigh has just sprawled like crazy from the '80s-present, although unlike Greensboro Raleigh is surrounded by like 10 incorporated suburban towns (give or take) in it's county so I think Raleigh's boom will soon either slow or become more urban. I used to equate Chapel Hill to High Point but obviously Chapel Hill has been very growth unfriendly so it's been ever so slowly creeping up up through the 50,000s for years while High Point is over 100,000 people now.

[cityboi]

I think Durham will have a bit of a difficult time surpassing Greensboro if Greensboro continues spreading it's borders based on mass annexation. Durham really doesn't have much room to spread out due to it's compact nature, although the northern half of the county is remarkably rural I think there may be development restrictions up there. Also since northern Durham has managed to avoid the interstate loop/highway bypass system NC is so fond of that area hasn't experienced much suburban highway sprawl (like 440 and 540 in Raleigh for instance). I'm really not as familiar with Winston as I've never lived further west in NC then Hillsborough so Greensboro was as far west I'd go to regularly but I always recall thinking Durham and Winston were about on the same scale. I remember thinking as a kid that Greensboro and Raleigh were closer in population then now (looks like in 1980 Greensboro was larger actually) but I think Raleigh has just sprawled like crazy from the '80s-present, although unlike Greensboro Raleigh is surrounded by like 10 incorporated suburban towns (give or take) in it's county so I think Raleigh's boom will soon either slow or become more urban. I used to equate Chapel Hill to High Point but obviously Chapel Hill has been very growth unfriendly so it's been ever so slowly creeping up up through the 50,000s for years while High Point is over 100,000 people now.

I think of WInston-Salem and Durham as twin cities. Both are almost exactly the same size although WInston-Salem looks much bigger because of its skyline. Both cities are rooted in the traditional tobacco industry and both currently focus on research and biotechnology. There was a time when Greensboro are Raleigh were the same size in population. In fact Greensboro was larger than Raleigh at one time and was the state's second largest city. RTP really set the growth trends in the area and Raleigh's population just took off. It wasn't that long ago when Raleigh had just over 300,000 and now the city has more than 400,000 residents. Raleigh is currently were Charlotte was in 1990 in terms of population. Greensboro is currently where Raleigh was back in 2000.

By 2030 Raleigh is expected to have a population of over 600,000 people and Charlotte will have over 1 million residents making the Queen City one of the largest cities in the United States. By 2030 Charlotte should be in the top 10 largest cities in the United States.

Consider this, in 1990 Raleigh's population was 207,000. During the same time, Greensboro's population was 189,000 so Raleigh only had about 18,000 more people than Greensboro in 1990. The two cities were roughly the same size.

If Greensboro's growth rate holds steady, Greensboro should have over 400,000 residents by 2030. However the opening of the FedEx hub which will attract more and more companies to the area should lead to a spike in the number of people moving into the city so its very possible Greensboro could have close to 500,000 by 2030. When you add the FedEx factor and new interstate highways, the equation changes. Winston-Salem won't be too far behind in population so by that time the Triad should move up in ranks as one of the larger CMSA in the United States. I think Charlotte, the Triad and the Triangle will become sort of like a mini megapolis by 2030. The Piedmont "Urban Crescent" (between Charlotte and Raleigh) is already the hottest growing segment along the I-85 corridor.

[Lee street bully]

I think of WInston-Salem and Durham as twin cities. Both are almost exactly the same size although WInston-Salem looks much bigger because of its skyline. Both cities are rooted in the traditional tobacco industry and both currently focus on research and biotechnology. There was a time when Greensboro are Raleigh were the same size in population. In fact Greensboro was larger than Raleigh at one time and was the state's second largest city. RTP really set the growth trends in the area and Raleigh's population just took off. It wasn't that long ago when Raleigh had just over 300,000 and now the city has more than 400,000 residents. Raleigh is currently were Charlotte was in 1990 in terms of population. Greensboro is currently where Raleigh was back in 2000.

By 2030 Raleigh is expected to have a population of over 600,000 people and Charlotte will have over 1 million residents making the Queen City one of the largest cities in the United States. By 2030 Charlotte should be in the top 10 largest cities in the United States.

Consider this, in 1990 Raleigh's population was 207,000. During the same time, Greensboro's population was 189,000 so Raleigh only had about 18,000 more people than Greensboro in 1990. The two cities were roughly the same size.

If Greensboro's growth rate holds steady, Greensboro should have over 400,000 residents by 2030. However the opening of the FedEx hub which will attract more and more companies to the area should lead to a spike in the number of people moving into the city so its very possible Greensboro could have close to 500,000 by 2030. When you add the FedEx factor and new interstate highways, the equation changes. Winston-Salem won't be too far behind in population so by that time the Triad should move up in ranks as one of the larger CMSA in the United States. I think Charlotte, the Triad and the Triangle will become sort of like a mini megapolis by 2030. The Piedmont "Urban Crescent" (between Charlotte and Raleigh) is already the hottest growing segment along the I-85 corridor.

I agree. Also, the American Express data center, Honda Jet and RF Micro will boost the population and attract more people. I think Greensboro should over 500,000 by 2030 because there are also many factors in our favor(including the changing of our government).

[cityboi]

Forbes Magazine ranks Greensboro number 1 in the United States for cities with the biggest median income jump for those with college degrees and jobs. These kind of statistics reflect a certain type of job growth in the area. Unemployment is still high in Greensboro, but it looks like we will see a lot of growth in jobs that require college degrees once the economy rebound. Higher income levels attract people and that ultimately leads to a higher populational growth rate. Thats why Raleigh's population swelled in the past 10 years. People are following the money. High median income levels also leads to more upscale retail chains and developments. We already have a Brooks Brothers and if we keep getting more high paying jobs, Saks Fifth Avenue or Neiman Marcus may be next. The Shops at Friendly Center may have to make room for more stores

http://www.news-record.com/content/2010/11/29/article/forbes_greensboro_leads_areas_with_biggest_pay_jump

http://www.forbes.com/2010/11/16/cities-median-income-lifestyle-real-estate-richer_slide_2.html

http://www.forbes.com/2010/11/16/cities-median-income-lifestyle-real-estate-richer.html

[cityboi]

The new census numbers are in and both Greensboro and Winston-Salem grew over 20%. Winston-Salem edged out over Durham by about 1,300 people and Greensboro is pushing 270,000. Greensboro should pass 270,000 this year after some annexations and in about 5 to 7 years Greensboro could pass 300,000 if it continues to grow at this rate. I remember 12 years ago when Greensboro broke the 200,000 milestone. The city has 70,000 additional people since then. BTW in 2001 Raleigh had about 270,000 people. The combined populations of Greensboro and Winston-Salem are half a million.

1. Charlotte - 731,424 (35.2% growth)

2. Raleigh - 403,892 (46.3% growth)

3. Greensboro - 269,666 (20.4% growth)

4. Winston-Salem - 229,617 (23.6% growth)

5. Durham - 228,330 (22.1% growth)

6. Fayetteville - 200,350

counties: (Cumberland County now has more people than Durham County. Greensboro has more people than the entire county of Durham)

1. Mecklenburg - 919,628 (32.2% growth)

2. Wake - 900,993 (43.5% growth)

3. Guilford - 488,406 (16.0% growth)

4. Forsyth - 350,670 (14.6% growth)

5. Cumberland - 319,431 (5.4% growth)

6. Durham County - 267,587

http://www.myfox8.com/news/wghp-story-census-110302,0,102164.story

[Beany]

Guilford County should pass 1/2 million sometime next year if growth rates maintain.

[NcSc74]

Guilford County should pass 1/2 million sometime next year if growth rates maintain.

Holy crap Cumberland county has over 300K. Man I need to get back more often. Last time I was there was back in '07. To the layperson you would not know that there are people living in those pine trees. I drove down 401 one day and there were more housing developments tucked way back in the woods. I think that was one of the areas Fayetteville annexed. I just wish my home city would grow and develop downtown and urbanize somehow. Steady growth for the Triad is good news. At least in NC we have choices on what metro region you could live in.

[Lee street bully]

The growth in NC is still looking great.

[krazeeboi]

Did anyone calculate the new MSA populations?

[DCMetroRaleigh]

From July 1, 2010 to July 1, 2011, the Winston-Salem MSA grew by 0.7 percent or 3,549 people to 482,025. It had the 157th largest growth rate, 98th largest numerical growth. It is the 105th largest MSA in the United States. It will be interesting to see if it reaches half a million residents by the end of the decade.

[twincity]

from WSJ:

Forsyth County grew by 4,282 people from 2010 to 2011, according to the estimates, reaching a total population of 354,952.

Still, Forsyth ranked 24th among the fastest-growing counties, up from 35th in the 2000-2010 period

So both Forsyth and Davie added residents while Stokes and Yadkin lost some. I guess 3,549 is the net gain?

[DCMetroRaleigh]

During the same period, the Greensboro MSA grew by 0.8 percent or 5,774 people to 730,966. It had the 142nd highest growth rate, 74th largest numerical increase in the nation. It is the 71st largest MSA in the nation.

[DCMetroRaleigh]

Forsyth County grew by 4,282 people from 2010 to 2011, according to the estimates, reaching a total population of 354,952. The growth rate of 1.2 percent was slightly lower than the state average. Davidson, Rockingham and Stokes — places that have benefitted from being near the core Triad cities of Winston-Salem, Greensboro and High Point — saw population declines after gains in the 2000-2010 period. From April 2010 to July 2011, Rockingham County declined by 311 people; Montgomery County declined by 131 people; Stokes County declined by 159 people; and Davidson County declined by 181 people. Surry County increased by 41 people; Davie County increased by 312 people; and Randolph County increased by 606 people.

from WSJ:

Forsyth County grew by 4,282 people from 2010 to 2011, according to the estimates, reaching a total population of 354,952.

Still, Forsyth ranked 24th among the fastest-growing counties, up from 35th in the 2000-2010 period

So both Forsyth and Davie added residents while Stokes and Yadkin lost some. I guess 3,549 is the net gain?

yep, definitely a slowdown nationwide of population growth because of the recession. foreign immigration, domestic immigration, and birthrates have plummeted since 2007 nationwide. Texas and North Dakota seem to be notable exceptions.

[DCMetroRaleigh]

The Burlington MSA, which is wholly composed of Alamance County, increased by 1.2 percent to 153,291, an increase of 1,759 people. It is the 261st largest MSA in the nation.