But there are areas that obviously experienced some growth such as the Barlow-Vincent area, which is a rural unincorporated part of the county. I expected to hear that. I can see that around here we do have some new people moving in. The results for Washington County were not overwhelming, but they were satisfying for the people who spent part of last year trying to convince people to fill out their census forms. Number one, it shows the county has not laid stagnant for the past 10 years, and it will also increase the amount of revenue we receive.
More people mean more state and federal dollars.
A review of the county populations for the past 100 years shows that the 1980s was a difficult decade for the county. It was one of the few decades where the population of the county declined. The young folks were leaving at that time because we just didn't have the jobs here. We can do even better if we continue to work to bring in some new jobs. That's what's going to keep us from losing them.