Detroit sees growth in population for first time since 1950s

The city of Detroit has been through a lot over the past few years. It has seen race riots, bankruptcy and a mass exodus of people since the 1950s. Now, Detroit’s comeback is being shown through numbers.

“I’m so proud of this city,” said Ann Connally of Detroit.

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Ann Connally has lived in Detroit her whole life.

She has seen it at it’s worst and is now experiencing the city’s revitalization.

“This is truly a renaissance, they gave us that name years ago but we’re proving that it’s true, we’re growing by leaps and bounds.”

Detroit is in fact growing.

On Thursday, the U.S. Census Bureau released data that shows the city’s population rose by a little over 1,800 people from 2022 to last year.

7 News Detroit reporter Tiarra Braddock wanted to find someone who moved to Detroit in recent years to learn about why they chose to move to the city.

“All of the things to do, all the new people, different cultures, different types of people around,” said Rebbecca Hodder, a Wayne State graduate.

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Rebecca Hodder is from a small town outside of Toronto, she came to the city to study at Wayne State five years ago.

Hodder just finished school but instead of going back home, she has decided to stay in Detroit.

“The stigma of Detroit is not true, it’s a beautiful city, it’s grown so much even in just the five years that I’ve been here,” said Hodder.

I also spoke to Mayor Mike Duggan who says he’s happy the Census Bureau is finally recognizing Detroit’s population growth.

He says for years, thousands of residents who moved in and fixed up abandoned homes in the city weren’t being counted.

“So, two things happened, I think we’re doing a better job at getting the census bureau to recognize who’s moving in and the second thing is the growth just got to be so great that they had to acknowledge it,” said Duggan.

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