Morgantown now #4 largest in state.... (Charleston, Huntington: house, tech jobs, tenants)

[WVUPharm2007]

...with over 11k jobs added so far THIS YEAR.



It will probably pass Parkersburg before the next full census, too.

From the Dominion Post:

Growth.
“It’s just about everywhere you look in Morgantown,” said Dan Boroff, city manager. “Anywhere you go you see cranes, new construction, jobs, new investments. ... It all comes together to form an economic collage.”
Morgantown is now the fourth-largest city in the state, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
“We are very fortunate with the dynamic that’s in place,” Boroff said. “We have WVU, the medical community, the business community. We’re a thriving, prosperous community.”
The city, with a population of 29,361 residents, took the ranking from Wheeling, which has 260 fewer residents. Wheeling has 29,101.
Morgantown grew from 26,676 residents in 2000.
The Bureau released a report Thursday identifying Morgantown as the fourth-largest city and as one of only two of the state’s large cities to see significant population growth from 2000 to 2007.
Martinsburg was the other city to see significant growth in the seven years, according to the Bureau, while eight of the state’s 10 largest cities saw pop-THE ASSOCIATED PRESS contributed to this article. ulation declines during the same period.
Martinsburg, the state’s ninthlargest city with 16,450 residents, grew from 14,943 in 2000. Fairmont and Beckley recorded modest population increases from 2006 to 2007, the Census estimates.
George Hammond, associate director of the Bureau of Business and Economic Research and associate professor of economics at WVU, said there are various reasons for city’s growth, with WVU, high employment rates and a booming economy among them.
The construction, manufacturing, transportation, health care, and leisure and hospitality industries have provided more jobs in the area, Hammond said, creating diverse job growth.
“It’s very broad-based,” Hammond said. “You can’t pick just one industry.”
Areas such as University Town Centre, which boasts retail shops and restaurants, create more jobs, Hammond said, and draw more people to the area.
Monongalia County has added 11,100 jobs to the area so far this year, Hammond said, more than double the next-highest job growth in the state — the 4,500 jobs created in Berkeley County, where Martinsburg is the county seat.
The area’s demographics have also played a part, Hammond said. Enrollment is rising at WVU, and the overall population is younger. With WVU, the area has a high concentration of highly educated residents, Hammond said.
Areas with highly educated residents tend to be more productive, more successful, offer higher wages and lead to more job growth because the area becomes attractive to firms and businesses looking to expand, Hammond said.
Since 2000, West Virginia has seen an overall “negative natural increase,” Hammond said, meaning there have been 941 more deaths than births statewide. But in Monongalia County, the decade has seen 1,934 more births than deaths, and Berkeley County has recorded 3,722 more births than deaths.

Wow. 11,000+ jobs added this year in Monongalia Co? And it's only July?!?! Amazing, I didn't even think it was that much.

[WVUPharm2007]

According to the Wheeling paper, it's 11,100 new jobs since 2000. Which is way more believable.

George Hammond, professor of economics at West Virginia University, said job growth is a key factor in population retention and expansion. He noted Monongalia County, which is home to Morgantown, has added 11,100 jobs since the year 2000.

[David Kennedy]

What is not seen is this factor...housing.. Glen-mark and others are building the housing for the population explosion. Their strategy has been to create the community for the high-tech workers in the other counties. Marion for instance will have a tremendous increase of workers in this next 2 year tearm..those people for the most part will be living in Morgantown and commute...
These factors are not shown at all..
And the Census Data is always so much behind in true reflection...we gauge our problems with this data to resolve them and it takes forever to address them.
Beckley has certainly done better that the shown figures..as has, Martinsburg and Charleston...and some others have done worse..Fairmont, Clarksburg and Weirton.

A lot of Federal money is at stake for some of these towns and they will 'cook the books to get that money, if they have too...that is probably why this data lags so far behind in time cycles.

Thanks WVUpharm...an eye opener that Wv is on the move upward...

[tbailey1138]

Congrats to Morgantown for their continued growth. Hopefully other cities in WV will see some growth like that as well. Something I do find interesting in all of this though is how the Census Bureau changes their numbers from year to year for each city, even on previous years. Numbers they listed last year were lower for each city and have suddenly raised several hundred. Any one know why they do this? Here's the link to show what I'm talking about.
West Virginia by Place - GCT-T1-R. Population Estimates (geographies ranked by estimate) (last year)
Population Estimates for All Places: 2000 to 2007 (http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/SUB-EST2007-4.html - broken link) (this year, click on the link for WV to see all of the cities)

You'd think the numbers would be the same on both lists since it comes from the same bureau.

I think it will be tough for Morgantown to pass Parkersburg before the 2010 census though. Parkersburg's losses are slowing and Morgantown's gains are as well. There's a difference of about 2,300 though so it will be close.

[Georgia]

Good for Morgantown. Now Pharm, make sure you and locals stay vigilant, so Morgantown does not go the way of Martinsburg!


If it grows smart I have a feeling it could turn into the next Huntsville, AL.
Now that is a nice small city.

[David Kennedy]

(???) thousand high tech jobs will coming to the Fairmont Tech Park in the next 2 years...I'm not saying how many...but housing and infrastructure can be found in Morgantown for them...the population growth so far has been absorbed...but farms, acreage and homes with acreage are a tighter market...
As the hiring will be mainly young and newly Degreed professionals, their primary wants for futher education, housing and recreation can be met very well in the Morgantown surrounds..
The Fairmont area will continue to show the same figures but the people working there will be living in other places...the one project for housing near the old Middletown Mall is sadly...way behind schedule...if it happens at all...

Morgantown leaders have some good planning in place...If only they could fund their needed road projects. Wv with the 2 billion dollar tax surplus could not help them...Other priorities are ahead of them using public money...the riverboat casino, Moneyhand Expressway (just 1 mile long) and waterpark-convention center in Fairmont will take the money first.

[Threerun]

You mean there will be tenants in the ISR building? Whaaaat?

[Threerun]

I attended a ribbon cutting for a small business over in Barbour County near Belington yesterday, drove down with a local banker who lives in Fairmont (born and raised and always lived there). He did a pretty good job discussing the differences between Morgantown and Fairmont and even brought up the regional metro government idea (which was soundly crushed in Marion not too long ago, apparently).

It's amazing the stark differences there are. Reminds me of Berkeley and Jefferson. Berkeley has always been proactive when it comes to schools, bonds and attempts at economic development whereas Jefferson sorta begrudgingly does her own thing and is perceived as anti-growth.

Good for Morgantown- it's growth in the right direction. Pray the infrastructure can meet the demand.

[David Kennedy]

ISR was built for a great project...when their President left the country with all that cash, the project was truned upside down...now another contractor has been hired to do that work (32 billion dollars). It is an international project...the ISR building will house over 3,000 people collecting data for the project, working 3 shifts, 24 hrs a day...
another building has just been completed and it will be a part of that project too...that building will house over 1800 workers to do its job and they are moving into the area as we speak.
One other facility has yet to be built on the old dragstrip site but federal investigations into that land deal have slowed down the process. It, the other facility, may be built on adjacient land that is not in question...From wha I'm told these projects are on schedule and will be under way in a timely manner...several european countries have passed laws and began funding to do their part of this project...It is a global project.

The Marion county people are not against a regional government...they, from what I hear, did not want to present anymore money to the crooks than they can handle.. As the idea was presented, the Fairmont Fathers would have had access to a bigger pie...If Morgantown could have taken over Marion County, better schools, bettter public transportaton (Mountain Line is servicing Marion County and Clarksburg now, in anticipation of the high speed rail service) better EMS...better services in general would have been spread out...but with that, would have come an audit and an open look at procedures and this could not be allowed...

[NOVAmtneer82]

The job figure that I read in the Gazette online also mentioned 11,100 jobs since 2000, which is still quite impressive for a town the size of Morgantown. I guess the real million dollar question is has all that growth been solely because of WVU's incredible student growth over the past decade? Or has it been from a truly "diversified" economy? I'm not in town enough to know the true facts but I'm sure others have some insight on this.

As for the actual population growth. Morgantown has seen nice growth during this decade, there is no doubt in my mind that it will pass Parkersburg, probably within 4 or 5 years. If (key word being "if") the growth continues, then it may one day give Huntington and Charleston a run for their money.

What is alarming though, is the fact that Charleston, with a population of just over 50,000 is the largest city in the entire state. Mountaineer field on a good game day has more people than that! Give it another year or two and there won't be a SINGLE city in WV with a population over 50,000.