***Official Please Play The South Petition***

NCBRI wrote:

[size=+2]Raleigh's Growth is Showing[/size]
Census finds city No. 1 on East Coast, No. 6 nationwide

Raleigh ranked sixth in the nation in numerical growth from July 2004 to July 2005. The city added nearly 14,000 new residents, more than any city on the East Coast, according to U.S. Census estimates released today.
The Census estimates put Raleigh's population at 341,530 as of July 1, 2005.

Raleigh's hot spots of growth, spurred by jobs and an influx of young families and retirees, cluster around massive subdivisions at the city's expanding edges. Thousands of single-family homes and townhouses have added to the population in places such as Wakefield Plantation in North Raleigh, Brier Creek near Raleigh-Durham International Airport, and developments near Rock Quarry Road in the southeast corridor.

The blistering growth is expected to continue. The recent estimates don't yet fully reflect the approximately 2,800 acres Raleigh annexed in the same period for new development. And they don't represent the nearly 2,500 units of condominiums under construction or planned for downtown, which could add 5,000 people to the city's core over the next three to four years. "We're becoming a big city," said Mitchell Silver, Raleigh's planning director.

But with big city growth come big city problems. Both Raleigh and Wake County recently raised their property taxes to cover expenses of growth and maintain their reputation for great schools and quality of life.

Cities Nationwide
Raleigh ranked 6th nationwide among incorporated places with more than 100,000 residents in numerical increase from July 1, 2004 to July 1, 2005. It ranked 13th in percentage change.

Change, 2004 to 2005
1. Phoenix, AZ - 44,456 (3.1%)
2. San Antonio, TX - 21,420 (1.7%)
3. Fort Worth, TX - 21,000 (3.5%)
4. North Las Vegas, NV - 18,095 (11.4%)
5. Gilbert, AZ - 17,173 (11%)
6. Raleigh, NC - 13,983 (4.3%)
7. Port St. Lucie, FL - 13,037 (11%)
8. Charlotte, NC - 12,743 (2.1%)