St. Louis, MO (KMOX) - An expert in population data says Saint Louis should be a significantly larger region today. But birth rates are no longer making up for deaths and people moving away. "For the past 55 years, more people have left our region, than have moved in," says Ness Sandoval, professor of demography and sociology at Saint Louis University, "we just haven't seen it because we had so many babies born it was able to offset that loss."
Listen to our interview on St. Louis population trends
Sandoval points out the 15 county region is now the 9th oldest in the country. That, he says, is not sustainable. "There are many regions in the United States where this is happening and they're struggling with their budgets, they're struggling with providing care for seniors who lose their ability to drive. You see more and more resources being diverted from families with kids to senior citizens."
Sandoval says one community bucking the trend is Lincoln County because of the housing availability for young families. He add Detroit was in the same situation a decade ago, but has been able to attract young people to it's downtown lifestyle. Sandoval warns the region will continue to struggle with declining population if we don't attract young people and young famlies.
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