Connecticut’s Towns Experiencing a Demographic Shift from 2015 to 2040, Connecticut State Data Center Reports

August 31, 2017 – Towns in Connecticut are projected to slowly gain population as a total, according to the 2015 to 2040 population projections for all 169 towns in the state of Connecticut, released today by the Connecticut State Data Center.

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1970-2010 Population and 2015-2040 Projected Population for Top 10 Towns Projected to Experience Largest Percentage of Population Growth

The new projections show that multiple towns are approaching a demographic shift due to an aging population, a near net zero overall migration rate, and a relatively low, but stable, birth rate.  Windham, East Windsor, Avon, Oxford, Ellington, Sterling, Norwich, West Haven, Rocky Hill, and Manchester are expected to experience the largest percentage of increase in overall population projected from 2015 to 2040.

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1970-2010 Population and 2015-2040 Projected Population for Top 10 Towns Projected to Experience Largest Percentage of Population Decline

The towns of Sherman, New Fairfield, Bridgewater, Sharon, Monroe, Cornwall, Salisbury, Old Saybrook, Washington, and Weston are projected to experience the largest percentage of decline in the overall population from 2015 to 2040.

The changing demographics by age cohort for towns in Connecticut provides a more complete picture of the overall trends within towns over time.  The Connecticut State Data Center has released an interactive data dashboard to accompany the release which enables users to view demographic changes town by town with data from 1970 to 2040.  When reviewing the age cohort data, long-term trends in demographics shifts within towns, and more broadly across the state when comparing multiple towns, indicate which towns are experiencing stable or declining births by examining the under 5 age cohort, as well as visually presenting the demographic shift between age cohorts as individuals age 55 to 64 age into the 65+ age cohort.

 

The comparison between are largest percentage of population gain (Windham) versus our largest percentage of population decline (Sherman) highlights the shifts in age cohorts within these towns.

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1970 to 2040 Comparison of Change by Age Cohort for Sherman and Windham, Connecticut

 

Connecticut’s eight most populous towns will see a growing or stable population based on the projections from 2015 to 2040, following an overall trend for several of these towns since 2000.

Overview, Connecticut will grow slowly in population from 2015 to 2040. The projected populations for each town can differ over time based on factors not included within the projections model, and thus these population projections are reviewed annually by the Connecticut State Data Center and compared to the most recent data to adjust projections if data reflects changes in the projected trend for a town. For more details on the data release and how to view and access data, visit the Connecticut State Data Center 2015 to 2040 Town Population Projections site.

Connecticut State Data Center Embargo Release of 2015-2040 Population Projections for the State of Connecticut Towns

August 15, 2017 – The Connecticut State Data Center will release the 2017 edition of the state of Connecticut Town Population Projections for 2015 to 2040 on August, 31, 2017.  This release will include population projections by five year age cohorts and sex for each of the 169 towns in the State of Connecticut.  This release only includes town population projection with other geographies for Connecticut to be released in upcoming releases.  Prior to the public release of the town population projections for 2015 to 2040, the Connecticut State Data Center will offer embargo access to the media and to Connecticut focused data organizations in advance of the public release.

When: Tuesday, August 29, 2017 at 10 a.m. EDT to Thursday August 31, 2017 at 12:01 a.m. EDT.

Where: Connecticut State Data Center embargo site.

Interview requests: Embargo subscribers may interview Connecticut State Data Center staff during the embargo period.  To request an interview, email ctsdc@uconn.edu.

Obtain media and Connecticut focused data organizations embargo access: Visit the Connecticut State Data Center’s embargo website for access.

Embargoed summary documents, press release templates, data visualizations, and raw data may not be released to the public by any means (including print, broadcast, Internet, podcast, social media, blogs, or in any other form) prior to public release.  The public release will be at 12:01 a.m. EDT, Thursday August 31, 2017.

For more details on the embargo and how to request embargo access, visit the Connecticut State Data Center Embargo site.