Demography, Population, and Ecology Commons^™

For Providence, Another Era Of Greatness?, Chester Smolski

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"Providence has come a long way from just 20 years ago when a visitor coming into the city by rail would find sprayed across the walls of the nearly empty Union Station such epithets as 'Providence is the pits' and 'Welcome to dead city.' And it was. I know because I lived there."

Where Did They All Go? R.I. Population Still Shrinking, Chester Smolski

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"Just how accurate are the U.S. Census Bureau estimates of the population, done every year between the actual count of population done every ten years? Well, we should soon be able to make comparisons of the recently released estimates for 1999 and the actual state totals when they are released at the end of this years, and when city and town figures are released April 1, 2001, exactly one year after the census of 2000."

Charting The Census Count On The Way To Our Woodsian Future, Chester Smolski

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"Our country is a wonderful example of the world in miniature. because of our generous immigration policy which allows approximately one million persons to enter the country each year and to come from almost any country in the world, it is not necessary to go out in search of different people and cultures for almost all are to be found here. Whether one talks of the Hispanics and Native Americans of the Southwest, the AfroAmericans of the South, the Asians of Hawaii, the whites of the North or the more than 120 national groups found in the Elmhurst neighborhood of …

Census Bureau Seeks Partners In Business, Chester Smolski

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"By now you should have seen the advertisements for the U.S. Census Bureau to apprise us of the forthcoming census on April 1, 2000. And there will be plenty more since the Bureau has budgeted $167 million on this push for public awareness, something it has never perviously paid to do."

Amid Declining Populations, N.E. Planners Meet, Chester Smolski

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"The day-long regional meeting of the American Planning Association recently held in Providence drew a variety of planners from the three southern New England states. Coming form the town, city, state and regional planning agencies, private organizations as well as the academic community, the planners addressed a number of issues, ranging from suburban stress to the latest computer technologies."

U.S. Census Nears; Results To Be Questioned, Chester Smolski

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"It is the largest peacetime activity of the United States government, and since its inception in 190 takes place every 10 years. It will employ, at its peak, 860,000 workers who will receive a major portion of the $4.5 billion that Congress recently appropriated for the task. And the total population will be recorded for one day, a far cry from the 18 months that were necessary for U.S. Marshals who tried to find everyone in 1790."

Time To Trade In Our Island Mentality For A World View, Chester Smolski

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"The 836 residents of New Shoreham (Block Island) don't leave that island very often because of the expense and inconvenience. And some say that there is no need to leave that 10 square miles of beauty because they have everything there, so they are happy to stay.

That type of mentality, of feeling isolated and different from other places, may also be true of the state which, coincidentally, has the name "island" in its name. The reluctance to leave or move across the minuscule box of orders that define this smallest of states means that we turn inward and don't …

Population Numbers Are Necessary To Predict The Future, Chester Smolski

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"'Demographics explain about two-thirds of everything.' So say David K. Foot and Daniel Stoffman in Canada's best selling nonfiction book for 1996, Boom, Bust and Echo."

James Rouse--A Man For All Seasons, Chester Smolski

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"Donna Shalala, Secretary of Health and Human Services, said it best: he 'did more to revitalize American cities than anyone this century.' Recognition of this fact came last September when President Clinton awarded him our nation's highest civilian honor--the Presidential Medal of Freedom. James W. Rouse, died at the age of 81, just 17 short days before his 82nd birthday on April 26--a long life with long-lasting achievements by a humanist and an urbanist, a man often referred to as a 'real Christian' and an 'urban visionary.' Where does one begin?"

The Nemesis Of Population Decline, Chester Smolski

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"The recent announcement by the U.S. Census Bureau that Rhode Island was one of only two states (New York being the other) to lose population between July 1, 1994 and July 1, 1995 should come as no surprise. After all, according to Census estimates, we have been losing population for each of the past five years and now have 15,000 fewer residents than we had on July 1, 1990."

Keeping The Pols Honest With Regionalization, Chester Smolski

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"The New England Governor's Conference will hold a meeting in Hartford on December 6 to address regional economic issues that are common to the six states located in the northeast corner of the country. During that same week, the towns of Warren and Bristol in Rhode Island will hold public sentiment for the sharing of schools in the two towns. As disparate as these two meetings appear to be, there is a commonality of purpose that marks both: regionalism."

The Benefits Of Regionalization, Chester Smolski

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"Bristol County is unusual among Rhode Island's five counties. Not only is it contiguous with a county of the same name in an adjoining state, but it also consists of only three towns--Barrington, Warren and Bristol--and is one of the smallest of the 3,141 counties in this country."

Census Numbers Show R.I.'S Soul, Chester Smolski

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"More numbers have been released by the government from the 1990 census on population and housing. The results tell us something of the uniqueness of this smallest state.

It is useful to determine trends from the past and the present in order to plan for the future, a common method of analysis. But it is also helpful to realize that we are part of a region and a country, and much can be learned by making comparisons between ourselves and others for the same period of time."

Census: To Recount Or Not To Recount?, Chester Smolski

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"Whether to adjust or not to adjust, that is the critical question facing the US Census Bureau in the next six weeks, when it decides if it is necessary to make some type of accommodation in the figures form the April 1, 1990, census count.

Deemed "not the best census ever" by the New York Times, the count, as detailed by an embarrassed Census Bureau, missed between four and six million of the country's residents, an undercount even greater than that of 1980. Sadly, more than one half of the undercount included blacks or Hispanics, a population that needs to …

Surprise, Some Cities Are Alive And Well, Chester Smolski

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"Those city-haters are at it again. Most recently it was Don Shoemaker, columnist at The Miami Herald, writing in these pages about the loss of population from some of our major cities, using figures recently released by the Census Bureau."

Census Numbers May Mean Money To Cities, Chester Smolski

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"It looks like we're nearly there. The results of America's most costly census have been announced and many cities and states are not happy with them. A possible adjustment of figures will likely do little to placate them."

Land Costs Make For High-Cost Housing Starts, Chester Smolski

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"Here in the Northeast, where housing prices are among the highest in the nation, it is difficult to find measures to reduce the price of housing to make it more affordable. Even with talk of an impending recession, house prices have moderated only slightly, and the real estate business finds itself in a very troubled state."

Charting Migration And Miscalculation, Chester Smolski

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"There was cause for celebration last March 6 at the Department of Commerce building in Washington, D.C. The achievement was the recording of 250 million on the bureau's "population odometer," a device which records the population of this nation at any moment.

Based upon average births, deaths, immigration and emigration, a number is added every 14 seconds to the odometer, for a daily increase of about 6300. It was expected that the population total of 250 million would be confirmed with the results of the April 1 census. But preliminary figures indicate that the country has not yet reached this …

Voting Districts Can Be A Bone Of Contention, Chester Smolski

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"Size rather than number of voters is the criterion used in establishing district size. The difference in size between the largest and smallest districts from the ideal district, where all districts have the same population, is a source of contention. In 182 when Providence changed from 13 to 15 wards, there was a deviation of 10.6 percent between wards, deemed acceptable by the courts because, the judge ruled, the US Supreme Court has said 1.9 percent is acceptable. In the recent Johnston case, the total deviation came to 52.7 percent--a figure much too high to accept."

Demographics Will Dictate The Future Of Business, Chester Smolski

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"If one could predict the future numbers of a population with some accuracy, that projected data would be most valuable, especially to business."

Now We Are Counted, Chester Smolski

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"There is an unusual clock in the Department of Commerce building in Washington. Looking like an auto's mileage odometer, it records the nation's population. Another single number is added to the total every 14 seconds. On March 6, the population odometer reached 250 million, which should be the number reported from this year's tally by the U.S. Census Bureau, the 21st decennial census in our country's history."

Head Counting That Counts, Chester Smolski

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"Next April, the Census Bureau will take on the principal task for which it was created: To count each member of this nation. No small chore, considering that the number will approach one-quarter billion persons. The 21st decennial undertaking will be watched closely because the numbers will help determine where new markets might be sited, where federal dollars may flow, and a host of other conclusions that may be drawn by ascertaining the numbers and locations of people. But the results will be most closely scrutinized by politicians at all levels of government."

Unlike Most Top 100 Cities, Providence Losing Population, Chester Smolski

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"Given the recent history of population decline in Providence and other large cities throughout New England, one might think that major cities throughout the country are also losing population. Not so."

Eight Communities Meet To Find And Foot Housing, Chester Smolski

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"When resources are provided to local cities and towns to address housing problems, the results can be both innovative and productive. This was aptly demonstrated at a recent workshop on affordable housing.

The 150 attendees who went to Newport, one of the eight cities and towns that received grants to study the problem, were there to share recommendations on how to best address the Providence metropolitan area's lack of affordable housing."

The Governor And The High Price Of Homes, Chester Smolski

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"The recent well-publicized Cranston land sale that put the governor of Rhode Island in the spotlight, has raised questions about the ethics of a public figure being involved in a highly profitable real estate deal."

Housing Problems Grow More Acute For The Poor, Chester Smolski

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"One in seven people live below the poverty level in this rich country, and the result of this inexcusable condition is that housing is the principal problem for these more than 32 million people.

Nearly two of every three poor people rent their housing, and while home owners are experiencing increased equity because of increasing house values, low-income renters are having to pay higher rents with fewer dollars."

The Cities And Towns Look Ahead, Chester Smolski

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"What do you want your community to be? Over the next two and one-half years all communities in the state will be required to address this question, and to come up with a formal statement of what these goals and objectives are to be. And it's about time."

As The Population Ages, Housing Needs Change, Chester Smolski

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"The housing needs for all of us change over time, depending on one's position in the life cycle. The single person needs only a room, young marrieds settle for a rented apartment, and the family with children needs more space, both inside and out. Children grow up and still more space is needed, then the children leave the nest. Their parents become "empty nesters." A spouse dies and leaves a person single again and often dependent on others. And then, perhaps, a nursing home becomes a necessity before the person passes on."

Notable Efforts To Meet Emerging Housing Needs, Chester Smolski

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"This is a landmark year in the historical development of housing in the nation, ad Rhode Island almost became a part of this bigger picture. One noteworthy event has already taken place, and two special birthdays are observed throughout the year."

The Cities Do Need Help, Chester Smolski

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"The lead editorial in the Providence Sunday Journal of December 7, 1986 is completely off the mark and deserves to be answered. The attitude expressed by the writer conveys the specious view that because our nation's cities are not being burned down or torn apart by race riots at the present time then things are not really all that bad in our urban centers."