About 12.6 people a day moved to Georgetown between July 2014 and July 2015, according to data released May 19 by the U.S. Census Bureau. The nearly 8 percent year-over-year population growth makes Georgetown the fastest-growing city with a population of 50,000 or more in the United States, according to the data.
“I don’t think it’s any surprise,” Georgetown Chamber of Commerce President Karen Sheldon said. “We’ve seen continued growth over the past couple of years.”
Georgetown grew by more than 4,600 people to an estimated population of 63,716, according to the data.
“Our quality growth has been guided and managed so that we have not lost our small-town charm,” Mayor Dale Ross said in a statement. “We have successfully built a bridge between the past and future, which has allowed Georgetown to become the best city in the United States to live, work, play, raise kids and retire.”
Georgetown is also one of five of the fastest-growing cities in Texas. The list also includes Frisco, New Braunfels, Pearland and Pflugerville.
Sheldon said the growth means better opportunities for residents, including increased retail options and commercial growth, which could lead to additional sales tax revenue for the city.
“From the chamber’s perspective, it’s nothing but positive,” she said. “It reinforces the notion that Georgetown is a great place to do business.”
Georgetown City Manager David Morgan said the city has been preparing for the growth by evaluating transportation, retail and future development options.
The city and the Capital Area Metro Planning Organization are working on a study of the Williams Drive Corridor, which will examine mobility and economic development issues and determine future solutions for the four-lane roadway. Morgan said the city also expects to complete a retail study in the summer or early fall that seeks to bring new retailers to existing locations and promote new retail in the growing corridors.
“In terms of growth and what the city is doing to respond to it, we’re looking at it on multiple fronts,” he said. “We’ve got planning from a transportation standpoint, planning from a long-term land-use standpoint and we’re also preparing to take advantage of residential growth to grow our commercial tax base as well.”
He said the city is preparing for different types of commercial development along I-35 and SH 130. The city is also working on potential development projects within Longhorn Junction, a mixed-use development at the corner of I-35 and SE Inner Loop, and near Westinghouse Road east of I-35. He said he also expects commercial development west of I-35 and north of Lakeway Drive and where I-35 and SH 130 meet.
“We anticipate the growth is going to continue based on the amount of property that has been teed up for development,” he said.
According to the census, Georgetown added 16,316 residents at a growth rate of 34 percent from 2010-15.
Sheldon said in 2002 the chamber recognized the city’s potential to be a city with a population of 100,000 when the chamber’s board adopted the 100,000 Initiative.
“We’ve been preparing for this [growth] for a long time, and it’s coming to fruition,” she said. “Our forefathers had the foresight to realize that because we love this place others are going to, and boy, here they come.”
The Austin-Round Rock metro area also increased to a population of more than 2 million for the first time, according to the data.
