ALBANY — Dougherty County showed its largest population increase in a decade, while three metro Albany counties ranked among Georgia’s lowest for population growth in census data for 2007 released Thursday.
And Lee County, which ranked third in the state for growth in 2001, dropped to 31st by 2007, when its population increased by 2.7 percent to 33,050.
The slowing of Lee’s growth is due in part to fewer people moving out of Albany, Lee County Administrator Alan Ours said.
“It’s no secret that the growth in Lee has been folks moving from our neighbor to the south to Lee County for various reasons,” Ours said. “At some point, the number of people having an interest in doing that, the number, would slow.”
Still, Lee added 893 new residents from 2006-2007, including 377 births, according to the census bureau.
While economic factors — such as the closing of Merck in Albany and a decline in new construction — have had an impact, population growth of 2.7 percent is “still very good growth,” Ours said.
“Certainly, building permits are down, to 15 a month, versus three years ago when we averaged 35 a month. But at the same time, last year, 390 new homes were occupied in Lee County. That’s huge,” he said.
Lee Countians differ on the pace at which the county should grow, but residential growth is the factor that drives commercial growth, Ours said.
“I think you have to have a happy mix — commercial development is very important to Lee, as it is to every other county in Georgia. The commercial entities that are looking to relocate (want) rooftops. We always hear that.”
Dougherty County’s increase of .5 percent marks the largest gain the county has seen in a decade, and includes 1,543 births in its net increase of 893 residents to a population of 95,693 in 2007.
The county’s population had declined annually since 2001, when 96,128 resided in Dougherty.
Dougherty Commission Chairman Jeff Sinyard said the increase was a reminder that Albany and Dougherty remained the “catalyst of commerce” for the region.
“Despite a lot of things we’re seeing in the economy, the recession, we’re still a major commercial community,” Sinyard said. “We still have a lot of good things to offer; people still love and enjoy Albany, Ga. We have a lot of cultural activities... we have retirement capacity. Our cost of living is still one of the lowest in the state.”
The county issued 185 new single-family housing permits last year.
Outside of metro Atlanta, only one Georgia county ranked in the Top 10 for growth last year — Wrightsville’s Johnson County. Schley County, north of Americus, grew by 3.2 percent and was ranked 26th.
The rest of metro Albany experienced population losses last year, and Baker County was ranked 158th for growth, behind only Chattahoochee.
Baker County Manager Evelyn Phillips said the rural county simply cannot retain its young people.
“When these children grow up, unless they have a tie to the farm... they don’t come back to the area. They’re going on to other areas to find jobs and have careers,” Phillips said.
The county’s population decreased by 3.8 percent in 2007, to 3,933, with only 31 births, according to census data.
Economic conditions that have shuttered Baker’s few small industries have driven workers to move away, and the county’s existing housing has vacancies, Phillips said.
Still, the county attracts the occasional “foreigner” — retired or semi-retired households seeking to live in a rural setting, she said.
“We have a lot of offer retired people who want to get out of the fast pace,” she said.
Another event sure to “enhance the lifestyle” in Baker will be the arrival this year of high-speed Internet in Baker County, Phillips said.
“I can foresee what doors can be opened,” she said. “You just take the school students alone and what they can do at home — you don’t know how many households might set up a business.”
Terrell and Worth counties also declined in population last year, ranking 155th and 149th for growth, respectively.
After losing 1.6 percent of its residents, Terrell had a population of 10,260 in 2007.
Worth was left with 21,285 people after losing .8 percent of its population last year.
Another county that borders Dougherty, though it is not included in the census bureau’s Albany Metropolitan Statistical Area, experienced population growth last year.
Mitchell County, where a 100-million gallon corn ethanol refinery under construction is slated to open this fall, added some 382 new residents last year for a new population of 23,757.
Officials in Worth County disputed finding that showed the county had lost people.
“Ride through the county and look at the new construction,” Worth Commission Chairman Dan Miller said. “I think it’s wrong, because we have new folks moving in all the time.”
Worth County issued 51 permits for new houses and 32 permits for new mobile homes during 2007, Planning Director Glenice King said.
In the census bureau’s data released Thursday, all of Worth County’s municipalities lost population last year.
Sumner officials are certain their data is wrong.
The town annexed a 99-lot mobile home subdivision in the early 2000s, Sumner Mayor James Trammell.
“I know our community is growing,” he said.
The census data shows Sumner steadily declining in population from 309 in 2000 to 299 in 2007.
Sumner Clerk Bonnie Walker said the census bureau had not provided a boundary annexation survey to the town, or to Worth’s three other municipalities.
“I’ve been trying to tell them this now for several months,” Walker said.
With the annexed subdivision, where about 50 new homes are located, Walker estimated Sumner’s population to actually be between 500 and 600 people.
Accurate or not, dwindling populations in south Georgia will have a dramatic impact on house and senate redistricting to take effect in the 2012 election.
With population growth in metro Atlanta, the legislature’s 180 House seats and 56 Senate seats will be redistributed based on the 2010 census, when Georgia’s population is expected to reach 10 million.
“In areas that have not kept up with the growth rate of the state will lose representation,” said Rep. Ed Rynders, R-Lee County.
House districts that right now hold 43,000 people will have to add 10,000 during redistricting.
“I’m anticipating a loss of five House seats and two Senate seats at a minimum,” Rynders said.