Virginia figures from the 2010 United States Census released last Thursday report a spike in the Asian and Hispanic populations, specifically in Northern Virginia counties. As a result, the state has reached 8 million residents and nearly one-third of them are non-white or multi-racial.
The 2010 census found a growth of more than 900,000 people during the 10 years since the last survey. Growth in Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William counties accounts for 40 percent of the state's total growth, and Loudoun was the fastest growing county, increasing its size by 84 percent.
Leesburg Town Council member Kenneth Reid said the effects of the growth in his county are felt mostly in two areas.
"The major pressure is on schools and transportation," Reid said. "We have had to build so many schools in the past 10 years, and we are projecting we will need to build 19 more in the next 20 years."
The construction of these schools, Reid said, has meant a large increase in taxes for Loudoun residents. Those taxes are necessary because so much of the county is school-aged, Reid said.
"The major reason for population growth is children," he said. "The school-age population has doubled, gone up 100 percent. This is the place to go for young couples starting families."
This high number of young Virginians is a factor of the state's increased ethnic diversity, said Qian Cai, director of the Demographics and Workforce Group at the University's Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service.
"There are two reasons why we saw a large increase in Asians and Hispanics," Cai said. "One reason is immigration. They are moving to us. But the other reason is fertility. They have higher fertility than white women, and birth has contributed heavily to the growth of the minority population."
The growth in Charlottesville and Albemarle County mirrors that of the state, City Spokesperson Ric Barrick said.
"We grew about 3,000 people since 2000," Barrick said. "Albemarle County is now in the top 10 counties for population, and it really has been responsible growth, not explosive growth."
Cai said he believes growth has been concentrated in certain areas for job-related reasons. People move out of areas where the economy is sputtering, Cai said, citing the 10-percent population drop in Danville.
For the growth in Leesburg to be sustainable, Reid said, new job opportunities must be developed.
"We don't have a lot of large corporations out here yet," he said. "The county is still by and large very rural and ... farming is not economically viable." He expressed a need for an increase in high-wage, knowledge-based employment within county boundaries, saying many residents commute long distances to jobs in other areas.
These extended commutes are expensive and problematic, especially because there is no interstate highway in the county.
"We have had trouble coming up with funding for transportation in Virginia," he added. He hopes the increased population will provide the county with "more political clout. The major positive benefit of the growth is the potential for more funding for education and transportation."
The state already has been impacted culturally by the increase in minority populations. Reid commented on the increased variety of businesses, specifically restaurants, and an exponential growth in the number of churches, synagogues, mosques and temples.
Cai said these changes were making Virginia "more vibrant and more diverse. This is a good thing. It enriches our society and enriches our lives"
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