Phoenix’s population will surpass Philadelphia’s

By Lauren McGlone
Senior Staff Writer
April 4, 2007

Although the City of Brotherly Love regularly boasts of its status as one of the largest cities in the United States, the population of Philadelphia has been topped by another large American city. With the results of city data from the United States Census Bureau to be released in June, it is expected that Phoenix, Ariz. will take Philadelphia’s place as the fifth-largest city in America.

Reports claim that Phoenix may have passed Philadelphia in population almost two years ago. Last week, the Census Bureau released statistics that listed Philadelphia County (equivalent to the city of Philadelphia) with a population of 1,448,394 people. The 2005 figure for Phoenix featured a population of 1,461,575 people. Since the Phoenix population has been steadily increasing, while Philadelphia’s has been dropping, it is expected that the Phoenix population will continue to rise and pass Philly.

However, nothing is official until the Bureau releases its report in June. For the time being, Philadelphia will remain in the number five position, most likely to be changed this summer.

According to Greg Harper, a Bureau employee who collected the county statistics, the change in population is based on birth and death rates in Philadelphia, which replaced projected figures.

One theory attempting to explain the population submission to Phoenix is that people are moving to the Southwest. Others offer the explanation that Phoenix has now incorporated its surrounding suburbs into the city’s population total.

According to the Philadelphia Daily News, some people living in Philadelphia claim the drop to sixth place does not really matter. However, Phoenix is already boasting about the higher placement, beginning last year before results were official.

As told to the Daily News last week, Philadelphians are not worried about the drop. Individuals imply that size does not matter, and in some cases, smaller is better. Philadelphians appear to care only about their own city, rather than the population of a city thousands of miles away.

mcglonel1@lasalle.edu