Census: Little change locally in 10 years

The 2010 census provides no big surprises for Wahkiakum county residents. The county grew four percent, from 3824 in 2000 to 3978.

Averages can be misleading, but they offer food for thought.

Wahkiakum County lines up with Washington state on many indices:

--The population is about 50 percent women.

--The number of people in households in the county and the state are 2 ½.

--In 2009, the number of people in poverty in Wahkiakum was 13 percent, slightly over the state average of 12 percent.

--Ninety-two percent of people over 25 in Wahkiakum are high school graduates, slightly higher than the 89.4 percent for the state overall.

But while 30.8 percent of state residents over 25 have a bachelor degree or higher; only 16.3 in Wahkiakum hold those degrees.

--The county population has a higher rate of home ownership than the state population, 74 to 65 percent. The median value of those homes was $195,200 between 2005-2009.

--The median household income in Wahkiakum was $44,503 compared to a state average of $56,479.

--While we may think we drive much further for work, the average commute is 30 minutes, five minutes more than the state average.

The census provides population data that is used to define districts for local entities such as the school board directors. Given the relatively small shifts in growth, most units of local government have opted to leave boundaries as they were.