Thursday, July 02, 2009

Growing Claims: Bernalillo Ranked No. 1


Journal Staff Report
       Sandoval County claimed the top two fastest-growing cities from 2007 to 2008, according to census data released Wednesday.
    New U.S. Census Bureau population estimates showed a growth spurt in Bernalillo that caused its population to increase 17.16 percent, rising from 6,589 to 9,237. Cuba's population increased 12.88 percent.
    "We knew this was coming," said Bernalillo Town Councilor Santiago Montoya, adding that much of the growth has come west of the Rio Grande from the Santiago subdivision.
    "It is all welcome growth. It gives people an opportunity to live in the town," he said. "It is the best place to live."
    The area across from Our Lady of Sorrows Church and areas near Town Hall also saw a population increase, Bernalillo Mayor Patricia A. Chávez said.
    She said the town has taken measures to handle the growth spurt, such as increasing the number of police officers and upcoming road improvements.
    The challenge, Montoya said, has been balancing new growth with keeping the old character of the town. Bernalillo, though, is running out of space to grow because it is boxed in by Santa Ana and Sandia Pueblos, as well as Placitas to the east and Rio Rancho to the west, Montoya sad. That's added more density to certain parts of the town, he said.
    Rio Rancho's population grew 3.85 percent to 79,655 residents, ranking it the seventh-fastest growing city between 2007 to 2008.
    The city's three major growth areas are the Cabezon, Loma Colorado and Northern Meadows subdivisions, Rio Rancho Mayor Tom Swisstack said.
    While the growth in Cabezon is starting to slow, Swisstack said there's still plenty of housing developments in Northern Meadows and Loma Colorado.
    "And there's pockets of land assembling near the City Center where you'll see more (population) growth," he said.
    The city's big population climbs in recent years "was the exception to the rule," Swisstack said.
    "But if you look at Rio Rancho's history, we've always hovered around 1,000 to 1,500 housing permits a year," he said, adding that he believes the city will hit 1,000 housing permits again this year despite the slow economy.
    Swisstack said new businesses — such as Hewlett-Packard, Presbyterian Hospital and a University of New Mexico campus — will continue to drive growth.
    Jack Baker, a research scientist at the University of New Mexico's Bureau of Business and Economic Research, said he was surprised by the number of smaller communities such as Cuba, Edgewood, Milan and Jemez Springs that experienced relatively high annual growth rates.
    "Something's going on there, but I couldn't tell you without further research exactly what that is. But something's happening," Baker said.
   
    Largest Growth Top five New Mexico cities by annual growth rate between 2000 and 2008: n Cuba — 10.42 percent n Rio Rancho — 5.39 percent n Edgewood — 4.67 percent n Los Lunas — 4.25 percent n Bernalillo — 4.14 percent Top five New Mexico cities by population increase between 2000 and 2008: n Albuquerque — from 449,380 to 521,999, a rise of 72,619 n Rio Rancho — from 51,772 to 79,655, a rise of 27,883 n Las Cruces — from 74,365 to 91,865, a rise of 17,500 n Santa Fe — from 63,048 to 71,831, a rise of 8,783 n Farmington — from 38,364 to 42,637, a rise of 4,273 Source: Bureau of Business and Economic Research
       

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Largest Growth

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