North Liberty special census comes in at more than 18,000

North Liberty's population has grown more than officials thought since the last official census in 2010, making the city eligible for hundreds of thousands of dollars more in state money.

To the north, another fast-growing city - Marion - plans to conduct a special count in the coming months, hoping to tap into thousands more in state money, too.

North Liberty officials anticipated the city's population had reached 17,000, up from the last official census count of 13,374 in 2010.

What they got was a surprise. According to preliminary numbers released Monday, North Liberty's population is 18,228, a 36 percent increase in five years.

'It was surprising, I didn't dream it would be 18,000,” said Assistant City Administrator Tracey Mulcahey. 'If we continue at this pace, we will have added 10,000 people in 10 years, which is crazy because that's almost doubling our population.”

Knowing the community was rapidly growing, North Liberty officials began pursuing a special count in 2014 to get more state road-use tax funding, which is distributed per capita. The special census cost about $280,000, but North Liberty officials estimate the new count will provide $500,000 more each fiscal year for road maintenance and construction.

City officials originally expected to see the first revenue increase this July. But the count was not officially signed by the end of 2015 so now they'll have to wait until July 2017.

'With the growth you have the extra stress on the existing system and the growth of the system,” Mulcahey said, adding the city has grown to include 40 miles of streets.

North Liberty Mayor Amy Nielsen said the added revenue should help the community keep up. 'It's very helpful to get that extra revenue in so we can take care of the people that are coming here,” she said.

Nielsen said cooperation with census enumerators helped during the process.

'We really appreciate that people took the time to speak to those coming to their doors or call the number on the leaflet that was left. Every person counts and needs to be counted and it helps the city grow even more.”

Officials in Marion are also taking advantage of the additional funds that population increases can provide, launching a partial special census count that could bring in an estimated $280,000 over four years.

'We had done this in the past, and we have been consistently growing for several years,” said Amanda Kaufman, assistant to the city manager. 'This was just the perfect time to do it.”

Kaufman said the city estimates the partial special census will count 400 to 600 people in areas north of 29th Avenue, west of 31st Street and north of Highway 100 - areas that have grown significantly since the last official census in 2010.

The count should take three to five weeks, and according to the U.S. Census Bureau, enumerators could be in the field as early as late February or early March. The city hopes to have the certified count by July 1.

Dave Hockett, Marion's assistant planning and development director, said the population estimates are compiled by the state, which multiplies how many building permits the city issued the previous year by 2.34 people per home. He said most of the growth is occurring on the north side.

'I think it's just the proximity to the jobs in Marion and Cedar Rapids, and I think the school districts drive a lot of desire to be in Marion,” Hockett said. 'It has that small-town quality.”

The city last year conducted another program through the U.S. Census Bureau, the Geographically Updated Population Certification Program, that counted the population in areas annexed after the 2010 census, including Brookside, North 10th Street and Alburnett Road. That count boosted Marion's population to 35,163 - an increase of 400 people.

That program is projected to bring in an additional $470,000 through 2020.

After covering the costs of both censuses, Kaufman said, Marion will see an additional $700,000 in state funding through the end of the decade.

Marion last requested a special census in 1995 when it saw the population increase by 2,700 to 23,105.

The Census Bureau is hiring enumerators to lead the count, looking for 85 applicants. Applications, which are due Jan. 22, can be found online at cityofmarion.org or at Marion City Hall.