NORWICH – Town of Plymouth Supervisor Jerry Kreiner jokingly surmised that too much snow may have driven out the 245 people his town lost over the past decade.
But as to a better reason why this small town just northwest of the county’s seat lost the most population of any town in Chenango County since 2000 is anybody’s guess, he said.
Overall, Chenango County lost 924 people over the past decade, according to the long-awaited 2010 U.S. Census report released last Thursday. The county’s population dropped from 51,401 to 50,477. The number of adults and children in Chenango peaked at 51,798 in 1990 before beginning the current downward trend.
The loss is typical statewide and may be a direct result of higher taxes in New York and people leaving for job opportunities outside the area, said Opportunities For Chenango Executive Director Wayne Viera.
Morrisville State College’s Norwich Campus Dean Marsha Cornelius said the college anticipates that enrollment numbers will go down as fewer students will be graduating from high school.
The Town of Norwich gained the most people since 2000, followed by Preston. However, both the City of Norwich and North Norwich lost population.
The outward migration was reflective of the state as a whole. Seventeen counties in New York lost more than 3 percent of their population and 23 grew only slightly (0 to 2.9 percent change). New York’s overall population has grown from 18,976,457 in 2000 to 19,378,102 in 2010.
New York’s population shift illustrates an ongoing and troubling trend that spells less political power and reduced federal aid for the Empire State.
“These national figures are an important wake up call for New York, providing a snapshot of population trends in and outside of New York State,” said NYSAC Executive Director Stephen J. Acquario. “We need to explore the ramifications of this information and enact state policies to improve our living conditions, our business conditions so that our residents continue to believe that the future of this state is bright and improving.”
A NYSAC report forewarned a range of coalescing challenges facing New York policy makers including our stagnant population growth, the continuing exodus of the young and educated to other states, an increasing population over age 65, higher rates of poverty than the nation as a whole, dismal private sector job growth, increasing unemployment and a business climate ranked as one of the most costly in the nation.
The results show 3.1 percent of Chenango County’s population is Black, Asian, Hispanic or other than non Hispanic white. The census counted 48,265 white, non Hispanic; 929 Hispanic; 345 black; 204 Asian, and 1,032 other in Chenango County.
The number of Hispanics in the U.S. surpassed the 50 million mark, growing 43 percent and accounting for more than half of the national growth since 2000. By contrast the non-Hispanic population grew by 5 percent. Compared to 2000, Chenango County was 1.07 Hispanic versus 1.8 today.
2000 2010
CHENANGO 51,401 50,477, lost 924
Plymouth 1,804 , lost 245
North Norwich 1,783, lost 183
Norwich City 7,190, lost 165
