Census data: Fort Worth is fastest growing city in US

Fort Worth - Inching toward the million mark, Fort Worth witnessed the nation's most significant surge in inhabitants in 2022, outpacing all other American cities, as reflected in the latest Census data. The robust Texan city, in its vibrancy and allure, greeted an additional 19,170 individuals in the year leading up to July 1, 2022, thus pushing its total headcount to an impressive 956,709, as per the statistics unveiled on May 18.

Over the past two decades, Fort Worth has consistently topped or closely trailed the leader board of America's fastest-growing markets.

“If you go back and look at the last 20 years, Fort Worth is either at or near the top of the fastest-growing markets in the United States,” the city's assistant director of planning and data analytics Eric Fladager said. “This is not out of line with what we would expect.”

Delving into the figures, Fladager equated the population increase to roughly 50 newcomers per day, painting a colorful picture of the ongoing influx.

“It’s kind of like a busload of folks arriving every day,” he said.

Despite the growth spurt, Fort Worth still nestles comfortably in its spot as the nation's 13th largest city and the fifth-largest in the Lone Star State, only surpassed by Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, and Austin.

Meanwhile, the Big Apple, New York, clinging to its top spot despite a demographic dip, continues to be America's most populous city with an estimated 8.3 million residents. Trailing behind, Los Angeles holds the No. 2 spot on the national scale.

Forecasting the city's growth trajectory, Fladager predicts that Fort Worth will breach the million-resident threshold by either 2027 or 2028, given the figures maintain their steady pace.

“Many of the cities that are on the top list have actually lost population since 2020. So there’s not an even playing field in terms of how growth happens or does not happen,” he said.

Standing as the sole state boasting more than three cities on both lists of the 15 swiftest-growing large cities and towns, in terms of sheer numbers and percentage growth, Texas leads the pack.

Situated north of Austin, Georgetown claimed the title as the nation's fastest-expanding city for populations exceeding 50,000, exhibiting a robust 14.4% surge. Among the top 15 entrants on this list, Texas marked its presence with additional representatives including Kyle, Leander, Little Elm, Conroe, and New Braunfels.

Though the state's major urban areas demonstrated significant demographic escalation, burgeoning growth is also evident in some of Texas's smaller cities on the outskirts of these metropolitan hubs. "These edge cities are rapidly growing as well," observed Kyle Walker, an Associate Professor of Geography and Director of the Center for Urban Studies at Texas Christian University.

“You see DFW and Fort Worth being attractive places to move to in part because housing costs are comparatively low, and economic opportunities are certainly available. We have a lot of amenities,” Walker said. “There’s room to grow… It is difficult to build a major city that is connected to open space. It’s rare for a city to be able to do both of those things at once.”

Fort Worth is currently developing its Comprehensive Plan, a blueprint for the city's future over the next two decades. The rising population figures significantly contribute to this planning.

Fladager emphasized that the city's increasing growth rate makes this planning all the more crucial.

“It’s important for us, in large part based on that growth, based on the changes in economic opportunities, based on the city’s focus and the city council’s very clear focus on the quality of life,” Fladager said. “Making Fort Worth really one of the greatest cities in the country and one that folks want to come to.”