Despite economy, Monroe County still growing
The U.S. Census figures released this week show Monroe County is still growing - although much more slowly.
That probably can be credited to two things: Monroe County’s economy is stronger than most of the rest of Michigan, and it’s a desirable place to live, so some city dwellers looking for a slower lifestyle still are finding their way here.
The flood of newcomers that saw the county’s population explode in the 10-year period from 1995 to 2005 is over, however - or at least postponed.
The county’s population was 133,600 in 1990, and 145,945 in 2000. In 2005, it had grown to 153,772. In 2006, the figure was up to 155,035, according to Census Bureau estimates, about 1 percent growth year-to-year.
It seems silly, given the state of the economy, to worry about controlling growth. The number of new building permits and housing starts has dropped to a standstill. It’s likely that 2007 growth will be even slower than 2006.
But we shouldn’t let that lull us into thinking that growth has stopped and that efforts to improve our planning process to manage future growth aren’t important.
There are literally thousands of homesites already platted in Monroe County, waiting for the economy to turn around. And when it does, there could be a landslide of construction.
A series of stories in The Evening News last September, called “Our Changing Landscape,” warned of the future dangers of urban sprawl to our lifestyle. The danger is still very real, even if it’s on hold.
Now is the time for city, county, village and township officials to figure out a strategy for the future - one that includes a lot more joint planning and cooperation.
One township, village or city can’t solve it’s own planning problems. They’re too interconnected with their neighbors.
The county planning department held a workshop earlier this year on managing growth. It was a good beginning of the conversation. But it was only a beginning.
As a community that treasures our rural and small-town lifestyle, we can’t wait until the growth returns to plan for it.
June 28th, 2007 at 10:19 am
Dan!
Good post. The slow times are moments of opportunity. Many of our best parks and forests were planned or acquired when no one else wanted the land.
And I’d have to say that the Riverwalk in Detroit could not have happened in an already booming city. The land costs would have been prohibitive.
So this is the time to figure out what kind of communities the people of Michigan really want. It is a time of opportunity.
Mike