South Dakota Census 2010: Madison Loses People, Gains Houses

I'm paging through more of the Census 2010 data. You can go to the Census website and run numbers yourself, but be forewarned: the interface isn't immediately user-friendly.

I noted earlier that Madison was a loser in the 2010 Census, dropping 1.0%, from 12th to 15th largest town in South Dakota. Madison was the second-largest town to lose population. The only town larger than us to lose population was Pierre, which lost 230 people, 1.7% of its 2000 population. Of course, just across the river, Fort Pierre gained 87 people, a 4.4% jump. And as a whole, Pierre's Hughes County and Fort Pierre's Stanley County both gained significant population, and all of those folks are buying groceries at Lynn's Dakotamart.

A number of towns smaller than Madison managed to grow. Many benefited from proximity to Sioux Falls and the Interstate. The best example: Harrisburg exploded 327%, from 958 to 4089 (by next Census, they'll be playing Class AA ball). Tea grew 119%. Hartford grew 37%. Moving farther out, some other small towns grew through the first decade of the millennium:

• Elk Point: +15% (even without the Hyperion refinery!)
• Dell Rapids: +21%
• Volga: +23%
• Chamberlain: +2%
• Spearfish: +22%
• Custer: +11%
• Hill City: +22%

A number of towns over 1000 had bigger proportional losses in population than Madison. Among them:

• Clear Lake: &ndash4.6% (but they still beat us in gymnastics)
• De Smet: &ndash6.4%
• Britton: &ndash6.6%
• Deadwood: &ndash8.0% (gambling doesn't guarantee growth)
• Hot Springs: &ndash10.1%
• Redfield: &ndash19.5%

In data that makes economists and tax collectors happy, housing grew even faster than population around the state. As a whole, while South Dakota's population went up 7.9%, the number of housing units statewide increased 12.4%. That means more people buying more separate living space for themselves, and more living spaces means more siding, shingles, microwaves, refrigerators, and TVs sold.

Note that even in Madison, where population decreased, housing units increased 5.2%. Compared to 2000, there are 66 fewer people in Madison but 142 more places to live. Overall, while only a third of communities gained population, just over half gained housing units.