By: Caity Coyne | Posted: Mar. 23, 2018 | Source: Charleston Gazette-Mail
CHARLESTON — For the fifth consecutive year, Kanawha County topped the state in the number of people leaving a county, according to 2017 population estimates released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau.
With 2,804 people leaving Kanawha in 2017, the county holds the 10th-highest population decrease by individuals of all counties in the nation. In 2016, it ranked 19th.
“Sometimes, these numbers don’t mean a lot. When people leave here, they could be leaving 8 miles down the road to a new [housing] development or something similar,” said Kent Carper, Kanawha County Commission president. “It’s not good, we don’t like to see our people leave, but with some new activities we have going — some new construction jobs, and other things — we expect to see that turn around in 2018.”
The last time Kanawha saw an increase in population was 2012, when an estimated 51 individuals moved to the county.
That also was the last time West Virginia as a whole saw an increase in population.
Farther south, McDowell County held the highest percentage of population decrease, with 3.5 percent — 683 individuals — leaving the county. This percentage decrease was the fourth-highest in the nation, according to the Census, and leaves the county with a total population of 18,456 people. In 2016, the county ranked 13th highest in percentage of population loss.
McDowell has been consistently losing residents for more than six years, and while the news is disappointing, McDowell County Commissioner Cecil Patterson said he isn’t surprised.
The most eastern counties in the Eastern Panhandle held the top three highest percentages of population growth in the Mountain State. Berkeley saw a 1.5 percent increase, Jefferson, 0.9 percent, and Morgan, 0.6 percent.
This was the first year in the past six that Monongalia County had less than 500 people move within its limits. In 2012, roughly 1,700 moved to that county. Last year, the population increase dipped below 1,000 for the first time, with 631 people moving in. This year, only 259 individuals moved to Monongalia.
West Virginia’s population as a whole is on a steady decline, according to past Census numbers. If the trend continues, the Mountain State could lose one of its three congressional seats by 2022.
In 2017, a total of 45 counties had a population decline. Nine saw population increases, and one — Pleasants County — stayed exactly the same.
