Sprawl is Hottest Far From Old Cities

Jul 01, 07:26 AM

Current Headlines: By HOWARD FISCHER, CAPITOL MEDIA SERVICES

Former Ariz. boondocks see astounding growth

Urban sprawl is translating to meteoric growth in the suburbs surrounding Tucson.

New figures today show triple-digit growth rates for both Sahuarita and Marana between the 2000 count by the U.S. Census Bureau and July 1, 2006. In fact, Sahuarita is the third-fastest- growing community in the state in this decade; Marana is No. 8. By contrast, Arizona's population has increased a comparatively low 16.8 percent in the same period.

The growth pattern around Tucson is mirrored elsewhere around the state.

Major cities continue to increase their populations, albeit slower than the statewide average. The communities that had been the suburbs a decade or two ago still are growing, though their rate of new residents has slowed as they become built-out and as housing becomes less affordable closer to where people work.

That had led people to flee to what are called the "exurbs" - the communities that until relatively recently were made up of little more than farmland.

For example, since the beginning of the decade, Tucson has eked out just a 6.5 percent increase in population. And Oro Valley went up more than 22 percent. But Marana's population is up 116 percent since 2000 - and nearly 15 percent in one year alone. Sahuarita posted a 251 percent increase since the census and is up more than 44 percent in a year.

A similar pattern is showing up around Phoenix.

That city grew fast enough in a year to officially overtake Philadelphia last July as the fifth-largest city in the nation. But its 14.5 percent growth rate since 2000 still trailed the statewide average, as did Tempe's and Mesa's.

Arizona's four biggest cities - Phoenix, Tucson, Mesa and Glendale - have kept the same rankings they had in 2000, but their growth was far outpaced by that of the more distant suburbs.

Chandler boosted its population by almost 36 percent, a move that helped it edge out Scottsdale to become the state's fifth-largest city. And Gilbert is up more than 73 percent, overtaking Tempe for No. 7.

Even farther out, Queen Creek is up 377 percent. Similarly, the far suburbs of Goodyear, Buckeye, Surprise and El Mirage also are posting triple-digit gains.

The situation has gotten to the point where people who work in Phoenix are willing to make the commute through the Gila River Indian Community each day to Maricopa, in Pinal County. The city of Maricopa wasn't even incorporated when the Census Bureau did its decennial count. But the agency estimates that Maricopa's population ballooned from about 1,500 at that time to more than 30,000 on July 1 of last year.

And that figure was nearly triple from just a year before.

Some other Arizona communities are showing that same pattern of growth, as people seek to live farther away from the city.

For example, Yuma grew by 12.5 percent since 2000, while San Luis is up more than 47 percent, and Somerton's population has increased nearly 45 percent.

Prescott is growing at less than half the rate of Prescott Valley. And the population of Williams is increasing faster than Flagstaff's count.

PHOENIX MOVES UP TO 5TH IN U.S.

Top 10 most populous cities in the nation as of July 1, 2006:

1) New York City, population 8,214,426

2) Los Angeles, population 3,849,378

3) Chicago, population 2,833,321

4) Houston, population 2,144,491

5) Phoenix, population 1,512,986

6) Philadelphia, population 1,448,394

7) San Antonio, population 1,296,682

8) San Diego, population 1,256,951

9) Dallas, population 1,232,940

10) San Jose, Calif., population 929,936

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

ARIZONA CITIES' RANKINGS IN U.S.

Nine Arizona municipalities made the list of the most populous cities in the country as of July 1, 2006. Their rankings, population figures and percentage increases are as follows:

5) Phoenix, population 1,512,986, up from 1,469,794 in 2005, a 2.9 percent increase

32) Tucson, population 518,956, up from 515,610 in 2005, a 0.6 percent increase

38) Mesa, population 447,541, up from 442,381 in 2005, a 1.2 percent increase

72) Glendale, population 246,531, up from 243,144 in 2005, a 1.4 percent increase

76) Chandler, population 240,595, up from 231,728 in 2005, a 3.8 percent increase

78) Scottsdale, population 231,127, up from 227,584 in 2005, a 1.6 percent increase

115) Gilbert, population 191,517, up from 177,653 in 2005, a 7.8 percent increase

134) Tempe, population 169,712, up from 166,625 in 2005, a 1.9 percent increase

168) Peoria, population 142,024, up from 134,259 in 2005, a 5.8 percent increase

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