2012 population estimates show big growth in Johnson County

You don't have to tell longtime Tiffin resident and mother of three Angie Dains that her city and the surrounding communities are booming and soon could be bursting at the seams.

She can see it in the hallways of her children's schools. She can hear it in the construction work surrounding her neighborhood. She can feel it in the swell of traffic in and out of the Johnson County community that sits just west of Coralville and Iowa City.

“It has grown tons,” Dains, 43, said Wednesday outside her Tiffin home of 13 years. “When we moved in, there was no development behind us or to the west. But it has really built up.”

New population estimates for U.S. cities and towns in the year ending July 1, 2012, confirm the growth Dains has witnessed. Tiffin, which now has 2,247 residents, saw the biggest growth in Iowa from 2010 to 2012 - 14.23 percent, according to the U.S. Census Bureau data made public today.

More growth

Other communities that saw notable growth rates include Hills, which ranked third in the state with 12.73 percent growth since 2010, North Liberty, which ranked 13th with a 7.07 percent growth rate and Coralville, which ranked 35th with a 3.95 percent growth rate, according to the Census Bureau.

The biggest city to experience a growth rate over 3 percent from 2010 to 2012 was Iowa City, which saw its population climb 3.11 percent from 68,016 in 2010 to 70,133 in 2012, the estimates show.

Iowa's overall population increased .33 percent from 2010 to 3,074,186 in 2012. Des Moines, the state's biggest city, experienced 1.02 percent growth during that time. Cedar Rapids, the second biggest city, experienced 1.23 percent growth, according to the bureau.

The Iowa municipalities that added the most people between 2010 and 2011 were Ankeny, with 3,177, followed by West Des Moines with 2,249 people and Iowa City with 2,117 new additions, according to the bureau.

Cedar Rapids, Marion, North Liberty, Coralville and Tiffin also placed high in overall population increases - they all were in the top 25, according to the Iowa numbers.

School impact

Iowa City Community School District Superintendent Steve Murley said he's seeing the growth in the crowded hallways and in the temporary classrooms that have been added at some schools.

An external demographer that projected growth for the district - which serves more than 12,400 students and covers 133 square miles, including Iowa City, Coralville, North Liberty and Hills - said it can expect to add 300 to 500 students every year for the next 10 years, according to Murley.

“That's an elementary school every year,” he said.

In response to the region's rapid growth, Murley said, the district's facilities master plan will look at adding new buildings where needed and updating existing schools. Growth projections have the district considering at least three new elementary schools, a new high school and additions to current elementary and middle schools.

“We have not yet decided where the new schools would go,” he said.

The school district currently has 41 classrooms in temporary space, mostly in east Iowa City. Murley said the district is looking to buy land near those schools and in Coralville and North Liberty.

He said the region's growth makes sense with the University of Iowa and the Hospitals and Clinics adding to the draw. He also said there are plenty of jobs and amenities available, making it more attractive.

“Over the course of the next decade, we will see an incredible amount of growth, which we are excited about,” Murley said. “I know it's a lot of work, but I really think for our community that it's a huge opportunity.”

Clear Creek Amana School District Superintendent Denise Schares agreed, viewing the growth of Tiffin and surrounding communities as mostly positive.

“It's a wonderful thing as far as communities and opportunities,” she said. “But it can present some challenges.”

Clear Creek Amana - which covers 250 square miles of Eastern Iowa including Tiffin, Oxford and part of North Liberty - has seen enrollment climb from 1,575 in 2009 to 1,920 in October.

Like Iowa City, Schares' district also is looking to manage expected “significant” growth with facility additions.

“We are considering all our options,” she said. “We are looking at how we can address immediate growth as well as use the projections to be as prepared as possible for future growth.”

Economic development is part of the reason Schares said she thinks Tiffin and other communities are booming. New residents also appreciate the small-town feel of Tiffin, for example, but want all the amenities of Iowa City, she said.

“It's a great place to be, and people recognize that, and I think we will continue to see the growth,” Schares said. “That's exciting.”

Growth and development

Tiffin Mayor Steve Berner said his community's swelling population has prompted the City Council recently to approve four new residential developments totaling about 200 more housing units. All of the units are owner-occupied - half are single-family and half are multifamily.

The city has planned well for growth, Berner said, preparing new infrastructure and additional city services for a larger population. One area that will need addressing if the growth rate continues, however, is the city's sewer plant, Berner said.

“I think it's a great thing until our growing pains hit,” he said. “The sewer plant is going to be a problem.”

The plant is expected to reach its capacity when the city hits around 3,500 people, Berner said. That's more than 1,000 people away, but Berner said he expects it to come quickly.

“The need for that addition will be here before we know it,” he said. “So as long as we handle that hurdle, we are in a great position to grow.”

Mike Roberts, owner of Mike Roberts Construction, is counting on that. After developing for years in North Liberty, he's back in Tiffin, adding to the neighborhood he began developing seven years ago - Woodfield Ridge.

“The City Council has wanted me to do something,” Roberts said. “They were out of lots, and I had 80 acres out there.”

Of the 25 new lots that construction crews are building on right now, Roberts said, nearly all are sold. Another phase of 35 lots is on tap, and Roberts said he hopes to start selling those in the fall. Looking ahead, Roberts said, he could add a total of 150 more lots in the area.

“We're really excited about Tiffin,” he said.

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