Many large U.S. cities lost population during the first year of the pandemic, some at nearly unprecedented rates, according to data released Thursday by the Census Bureau.
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The nation’s top 15 largest cities remained the same as the previous year, but more than half of them lost population.
The highest numeric drop was in New York City, which lost 305,465 people, or 3.5 percent of its population. The highest percentage drop was in San Francisco, which lost 54,813 people, or 6.3 percent of its population.
Washington and Alexandria, Va., were among the 15 that lost population at the highest rates, losing 2.9 and 2.8 percent respectively.
Covid-19 has killed more than 1 million people in the United States. As the coronavirus pandemic disrupted businesses and schools and remote work became more common, many people fled cities in search of more space and cheaper housing.
It is unclear how much of that movement will be permanent. Between July 1, 2020, and July 1, 2021, the District lost population for the first time in a decade and a half, with about 23,000 more people moving out of the city than moving into it.
New York City and Chicago showed particularly steep declines; both cities lost six times the number of residents they had lost two years earlier. A rate of population decline of 5 percent in one year, as was seen in Lake Charles, La., is nearly unprecedented, according to the bureau, which noted that that city experienced a destructive Category 4 hurricane in August 2020.
Cities in the South and West fared better. All but one of the 15 fastest-growing cities were in Texas, Arizona, Florida or Idaho, with increases of between 5 and 10.5 percent. All were relatively small cities, with populations under 220,000.
Cities with the highest numeric increases were also mostly in Texas, Arizona and Florida, with San Antonio, Phoenix and Fort Worth topping the list. But their increases were lower than they had been in previous years.
This story will be updated.
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