Population growing in urban areas

In the last year Seattle experienced record growth as population surged past 700,000.

Since 2010, Seattle’s population has grown by 105,000, placing it at the top of a ranking of 10 cities with the highest levels of population growth this decade.

Other cities on this list included Bellevue and Tacoma and six other cities with designated regional growth centers (Kirkland, Kent, Burien, Renton, Bothell, and Auburn).

 

The region’s top 10 cities with the greatest percent population growth during 2010-2017 include a mix of fast-growing small cities as well as larger and core cities that completed substantial annexations.

 

Focusing job and housing growth within the region’s urban growth area is central to the success of the region’s growth strategy, VISION 2040.

The region has seen a significant shift toward building housing in cities since the early 1990s.

In 2015, 96% of permitted housing units were in the region’s cities and urban areas, compared to 72% in 1991.