Watchout Knoxville, Chattanooga's Hot On Your Population Toes

The U.S. Census Bureau revised Chattanooga's population Wednesday, putting it at 168,293, marking 8.2% growth since 2000.  During the same time period, Knoxville grew 4.9% boosting its population to 182,337.

Chattanooga is 14,044 behind Knoxville right now, gaining on the Sunsphere City by roughly 667 residents every year.  If both cities continue their current growth trends, Chattanooga will pass Knoxville as Tennessee's 3rd largest city around 2030.

The 2006 census includes college students enrolled for the fall semester.  Here's where the numbers get interesting.  UT Knoxville's undergraduate enrollment in 2006 was 20,430, while UT Chattanooga's was 8,923... meaning Knoxville received an 11,507 boost, thanks to the big orange.  Remove both universities from the census figures and Chattanooga lacks 2,537 residents to Knoxville.

Knoxville has little room left to annex in order to grow, while Chattanooga could take Lookout Valley, Ooltewah, etc. to make further gains.  Mayor Ron Littlefield says several firehall projects need to be worked out before any annexations can take place.

Tennessee's 2006 City Census:

1. Memphis - 670,902
2. Nashville - 578,698
3. Knoxville - 182,337
4. Chattanooga - 168,293
5. Clarksville - 113,175
6. Mursfreesboro - 92,559
7. Jackson - 62,711
8. Johnson City - 59,866
9. Franklin - 55,870
10. Bartlett - 46,932

Of course, you can't do that because you can't tell how many of those students just moved from Mom & Dad's to a dorm and how many came from out of state.  But, it's still interesting to consider.