(WBBM NEWSRADIO) – The population of the Chicago metro area continues to decline, although not as quickly as previous numbers have shown.
According to new estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau, the population of Cook County dropped last year by about 68,000 -- a tad less than the 84,000 people who left in 2021, right after the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Most outlying counties in the metro area also went down. Lake County dropped about 3,000; Kane County 2,000; and Will County went from a small gain to a small loss. The exception is McHenry County, which gained about 150 people.
Cook County may have lost people, but it was fewer than Los Angeles County, which lost 90,000.
The places where the populations are growing: Houston and Phoenix.
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