They've all moved in since September 1990, when the neighborhood began. That means all 1,300 residents were missing from the 1990 census but counted in the 2000 census. And that new-neighborhood experience is being repeated all over the Williamsburg area. But while the lure of rich retirees sounds tempting, it creates some unusual problems. The general population is growing, but the number of elementary school students is dropping.
Retirees are loathe to raise their taxes to pay for schools, having already raised their children.
Traffic is worse. Many workers come from nearby York County or Newport News. To soothe the growing pains, James City may soon buy development rights from farms and forests to ensure that they remain undeveloped. That's a mantra that Bouvier, the ODU demographer, has been chanting for years. In academic papers and speeches, he pushes a no-growth agenda.