Married Minority? Census Shows Slowdown in Couples Tying the Knot

What does St. Louis say? The data reveals that married couples make up barely half of all American households.

The segment of the married U.S. population is about 51 percent, a decline of about six percent since the last census in 2000. In Missouri, the U.S. Census Bureau estimates about 54 percent of men and 50 percent of women are married. A societal snapshot As the Washington Post points out, the data reflects current conditions; meaning people who are unmarried today may not remain single over time. "(The data) are a byproduct of a steady increase in the median age when people first marry, now at an all-time high of older than 26 for women and almost 29 for men," says the Washington Post. According to an expert cited in The Huffington Post, the reason is twofold: "The fast-growing older population is more likely to be divorced or widowed later …

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Board of Aldermen Approve Ward 2 Redistribution

Some Ward 2 residents are now in Ward 3 or Ward 1.

Some Wentzville residents living in Ward 2 of the city will now be constituents of Ward 3 and Ward 1. At Wednesday night’s city council meeting, all aldermen present voted to redistribute the wards to reflect the growing population of Ward 2 based on the 2010 census. Ward 1 Alderman Cheryl Kross and Ward 2 Alderman Chris Gard were absent. Ward 3 Alderman Nick Guccione said Ward 3 picked up the largest percentage of the redistributed residents from Ward 2, about 1,800 people. Ward 3 Alderman Rick Stokes said the change will ensure that Ward 3 residents are better represented. “I think this is great for the citizens of Ward 3,” Stokes said. “The whole reason we have wards is so we have equal representation. And in the past Ward 3 had a large…

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Census Stories

Where Do You Live? Life in Greater St. Louis at the Center of Patch Series

Patch Regional Editor Holly Edgell discusses the series, which will unfold from now through the summer. Wentzville grew by about 300 percent between the 2000 and 2010 census counts.

There's got to be something in the water in Wentzville. How else to explain why people flocked to the city that calls itself the "Crossroads of the Nation" over the past ten years? This week's installment of the Patch "Census Stories" series focuses on the this mega-growth. Look for the article on this site April 1. As a recent transplant to the area, I can’t help but feel there is a split personality aspect to life in metro St. Louis. On the one hand, many St. Louisans seem to never have considered living anywhere else. They love their Cardinals, rave about Ted Drewes Frozen Custard, flock to the Saint Louis Zoo, and happily brave Highway 40 and other roadways to commute for work, shopping, school, leisure and life in general. On the …

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This Week in Lake Saint Louis

We had a glimpse of spring before winter snow took over again, but that wasn't all that went on this week!

On Monday, Patch released an article with information about the CyberKnife System that can treat tumors that were previously inoperable. The Advice around the Garden column offerd advice on how to properly prune a tree to keep it healthy. Updates came out from the Lake Saint Louis/Dardenne Prairire Chamber, which is partnering to offer vacation packages. On Tuesday, there was a live blog from the public work session and Board of Alderman meeting. News from the Lake Saint Louis Ski Club came out on Wednesday. Ameren's rate hike request hit a sour note as residents spoke out against the rising costs. New information from the US Census showed that Lake Saint Louis saw 43% growth since the 2000 Census. Raeanne Paynes was this week's Whiz Kid, …

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Wentzville Population Jumps Over 300 Percent in 2010 Census

U.S. Census data for Missouri released Thursday.

Wentzville grew by 22,174 people over the past 10 years, according to U.S. Census Data released Thursday. The city had only 6,896 citizens in 2000; today that number is 29,070. Wentzville saw the second highest growth in the county after O'Fallon. O'Fallon gained 33,160 new citizens between the 2000 and 2010 census. Missouri grew by 7 percent and St. Charles County grew by 27 percent since 2000. According to the numbers, 89.9 percent of Wentzville classifies its racial identity as white. The next largest minority, at 6 percent, is black or African American. Here's how the numbers break down for Wentzville: The numbers vary in the Wentzville School District, which covers a larger geographic area. The total county population today is 360,485…

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Census: St. Charles County Population Up 27%, St. Louis County Population Falls

No numbers yet for Lake Saint Louis, but the city adminstrator offers his best guess.

The US Census released some data today, but it may be tomorrow before we are able to see numbers for Lake Saint Louis. "I think the number will be between 14,500 and 15,000," said City Administrator Paul Markworth in an email to Patch. "The city percentage growth should be larger than the state growth." "This means certain revenue payments from the state that are pegged to census numbers will increase. For example, the Missouri Gas and Vehicle Rebate money received from the state should increase because it is tied to population. We have budgeted $390,000 in this line item and did not increase it in anticipation for our population exceeding the growth of the state's population growth," Markworth said. The Census showed a growth of 27% for …

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