One hundred thousand here we come.
Mayor Morris Flewwelling said there is no doubt Red Deer will reach a population of 100,000 when the next census, possibly in 2014, is conducted.
More details of Red Deer’s growth over two years have emerged as the City of Red Deer released its detailed municipal census for 2013. A municipal census was not conducted in 2012.
Since the 2011 count, the city has welcomed 5,232 new residents, a 5.7 per cent increase, for an annual average of 2.85 per cent over the two years.
Typically, the city anticipates a three per cent growth rate each year.
This influx brings Red Deer’s population to 97,109 from 91,877 — the third largest city in Alberta behind Edmonton and Calgary.
Flewwelling said the numbers show that Red Deer continues to be a young city with the average age being 32. He said one of the main reasons people come to Red Deer is because of the diverse employment opportunities in oil and gas servicing, agriculture and agricultural processing and a strong retail market.
The strongest growth was predictably seen in the new areas of Clearview Ridge with 714 new residents, bringing the neighbourhood’s population to 1,117, and Timberlands, with 631 new residents for a total of 864 inhabitants.
Slight declines in population were experienced in older areas such as Eastview, Deer Park and Lancaster.
Males have a slight edge, representing 50.1 per cent of the population, while females make up 49.4 per cent of the population. There are 48,677 males compared to 47,957 females in Red Deer.
The average man is 31 while the average women is 33.
Flewwelling joked this needs to publicized so women know where to come.
“Of course the wild west has always been that way,” he said.
The largest divide of sexes was reported in neighourhoods like Kentwood, where there are 2,206 males compared to 2,065 females; in Glendale, where 2,270 males outnumber 2,097 females; and Normandeau, where there are 1,914 males and 1,639 females. Most other neighbourhoods reported relatively the same number of males and females.
The data showed there are 84,717 Canadian citizens and 5,911 non-Canadians living in Red Deer. It was not a requirement to answer this question on the survey so there were 6,481 blanks.
The city plans to conduct a count in 2014 and this will be discussed during the 2013 mid-year budget review in August.
crhyno@www.reddeeradvocate.com