The result of North Liberty’s mid-decade special census is out, and the city’s bigger. Much bigger. It added the population equivalent of Spirit Lake in five years to reach 18,228. Depending on the outcome of a Waukee special census being taken for the same reasons, North Liberty will crack the top 25 largest Iowa cities while also surpassing two county seats.
In 2010, five of the seven cities immediately above North Liberty in population were suburbs (Newton and Indianola the others) and this census leapfrogs or challenges their 2010 numbers. The three above those — Ottumwa, Muscatine, and Fort Dodge — are a jump up but reported population growth of less than 1% in a decade.
(On a possibly related note, Ottumwa is losing both its Target and Kmart stores in a four-month span, which has to be a blow to the city. The next closest ones are in suburban Burlington, Iowa City, and Des Moines.)
Newton’s struggles were well-publicized after Whirlpool bought Maytag and told the city to drop dead. Newton High School departed the CIML a decade ago, but it’s going to face some old opponents as Class 4A football goes from 46 to 48 teams. This will only be a two-year bump, though, because Iowa City Liberty High School opens in 2017 and will have a football team in 2018. Thus, twice in a short span, North Liberty will get the best of Newton.