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07/01/2009
The suburbs are still growing, but several cities in southern Minnesota, including Fairmont, lost population from 2007 to 2008.
The U.S. Census Bureau is reporting its 2008 population estimates for U.S. cities, and in Minnesota it shows strong growth around the Twin Cities.
Among the cities the grew the fastest from 2007 to 2008 were Otsego, Hugo, Victoria and Waconia. They all grew by at least 3.5 percent since 2007.
Among the state's largest cities, the populations of Minneapolis, St. Paul, Rochester, Duluth and Bloomington all increased at least a bit.
The bureau reports that many of the cities with sizable populations that shrank are in southern Minnesota. Those include Fairmont, Albert Lea, New Ulm, Waseca, and Austin.
Fairmont's population was estimated to have dropped by 20 people in the past year, from 10,241 in 2007 to 10,221 in 2008. The population of Martin County was nearly static. The 2008 estimate is 20,435 people living in Martin County, compared to 20,442 in 2007.
The state as a whole grew by about 38,000 people to 5.22 million.
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ROD HALVORSEN
© 2009 KSUM.
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