Ten Years Equals Only 287 People

In a decade during which the population of California grew by more than 3 million, or 10 percent, and Contra Costa grew by just over 100,000, also about 10 percent, Concord’s growth was decidedly slower.

As in almost nonexistent.

According to Census Bureau figures released Tuesday, the city grew by a mere 287 residents — from 121, 780 in 2000 to 122,067 in 2010.

It is the 46th most populated city in the state, down from 40th 10 years ago. The cities of Palmdale, Elk Grove, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, Visalia and Lancaster all moved above Concord in the “Top 40.”

Concord City Manager Dan Keen said he wasn’t surprised by the lack of significant growth. “We have been tracking foreclosure activity throughout the recession and, given the large numbers of homes that fell into foreclosure, especially in 2010, we likely have lost a lot of people,” he said Tuesday.

“Until the Concord Naval Weapons Station reuse plan begins implementation, we are effectively a built-out city with limited opportunities for large-scale growth.”

That wasn’t true in other parts of the Golden State. California grew from 33.9 million residents in 2000 to 37.2 million in 2010.

Most of that growth appears to have come in the counties that span the middle of the state.

Riverside County had the biggest jump, increasing 41 percent from 2000 to 2010. The city of Beaumont in that county leaped 224 percent from 11,384 to 36,887 people.

Next was Placer County with a 40 percent jump. The city of Lincoln skyrocketed 282 percent from 11,205 to 42,819 people.

Other counties that grew more than 20 percent included Imperial, Kern, Madera, Merced and Tulare.

Los Angeles County’s population edged up 3 percent. San Francisco County’s population also rose 3 percent, while San Diego County jumped 10 percent.

The only counties that saw population decreases were in the Sierra Nevada: Alpine County (down 3 percent), Plumas County (down 4 percent) and Sierra County (down 9 percent).

In the Bay Area, the cities of American Canyon and Brentwood had the highest percentage of growth.

For more 2010 census information, visit the American FactFinder website. 

Associate Regional Editor David Mills contributed to this story.