Like a gangly
teen-ager, Colorado put on a growth spurt in all directions during
the 1990s, filling up empty spaces ranging from outlying fields to
the high-rises of downtown Denver.
More people arrived in El Paso County than in any other Colorado
county during the '90s, pushing it over the 500,000 mark for the
first time. Much of the decade's growth here, as elsewhere in the
state, happened on unbroken land just beyond the edge of
development.
Areas of Douglas and Elbert counties that were wide-open spaces
just a decade ago were the fastest-growing tracts in the nation, let
alone the state. The building frenzy could be seen elsewhere,
between Denver and Boulder, west of Pueblo and in resort areas along
the Interstate 70 corridor west of Denver.
Growth was largely an urban and suburban affair. Eighty percent
of the state's population remains along the 10-county Front Range,
from Pueblo to Fort Collins.
The boom rolled over the Continental Divide to the Western Slope,
where several counties grew at twice the state average, attracting
new retirees, ski-area workers looking for affordable housing and
people building vacation homes.
Pockets of growth could be found in areas near new prisons and
expanding mountain resorts. Growth in the the central-mountain areas
of Park, Teller and Fremont counties was partly due to new prisons
and the advent of gambling in 1991.
In a state that grew faster than all but two others - Nevada and
Arizona - during the '90s, milestones could be found everywhere:
Douglas County grew by an astounding 191 percent, a nearly
three-fold increase that pushed it past Pueblo County. The Douglas
County town of Parker more than quadrupled its size, making Castle
Rock's doubling-up look meager by comparison.
Denver grew at a healthy clip to push it past 550,000 people.
Denver joined other major cities around the nation, including New
York and Chicago, that experienced a '90s urban renaissance, while
others, such as Cleveland, have lost people to the suburbs.
Thanks in part to prisons, the eastern plains enjoyed a
population rebound to 158,319 residents, the highest since the
Depression.
Grand Junction was the surprise of the census, posting a 45
percent population gain, becoming Colorado's 14th-largest city, up
from 17th.
Pueblo dropped from the fifth to seventh largest municipality,
growing only 3.5 percent. It was surpassed by Fort Collins and
Arvada.
Then and now
The 2000 Census did not count everything. Here are a few other
indicators of growth. The first number is for 1990; the second is
for 2000.
EL PASO COUNTY
Registered vehicles: 371,000; 598,278
Registered voters:
199,301; 339,321
Miles of road: 4,849; 5,263
El Paso County
budget: $50.8 million; $90.1 million
Average daily jail
population: 523; 939
District Court cases: 70,862;
87,380
Births: 7,343; 8,196*
Birth rate: 18.5 per 1,000; 16.3
per 1,000*
Home starts: 741; 4,675
Building permits issued,
excluding remodels and signs: 1,063; 5,802
Enrollment, nine
largest area school districts: 69,215; 90,737
School buildings,
nine largest area school districts: 134; 162
Square feet of
shopping centers: 12.6 million; 15.5 million
Square feet office
space: 14.9 million; 20.8 million
Square feet industrial space:
24.1 million; 30.1 million
COLORADO SPRINGS
Single-family utility hookups: 720;3,660
Average daily vehicle
count, Interstate 25 at Uintah Street: 69,000; 102,500
City
budget: $111.1 million; $185.8 million
BY THE NUMBERS
El Paso County
76,447: Babies born, 1990-1999
34,764: Single-family homes
built, 1990-2000
*Figures are for 1999, the most recent available.
Source: Gazette research
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