Kootenai’s 4 percent growth rate state’s highest

Kootenai County was Idaho’s fastest growing county last year, with a population gain of 4 percent.

The county ended 2004 with 122,350 residents, according to U.S. Census figures scheduled to be released today. Second place went to Canyon County in southwest Idaho, where the population grew by slightly less than 4 percent.

Kathryn Tacke, regional labor economist in Coeur d’Alene, attributed Kootenai County’s rapid population growth to job gains and the “discovery factor.”

The county had one of the country’s fastest growing job markets last year. “Without jobs, it’s difficult to attract younger families,” Tacke said. “There were more job opportunities last year, which allowed more people to move here, and more people to stay.”

In addition, the county’s reputation as a desirable place to live continues to spread. New people moving to the area accounted for 83 percent of Kootenai County’s population growth over the last four years. That’s an amazing figure, Tacke said. Statewide, about half of Idaho’s population growth is attributed to net in-migration, which is defined as the number of new people moving in minus the number of people moving out.

Bonner and Boundary counties also posted population gains last year. Bonner County grew by 1.7 percent, to 39,872 residents. Boundary County’s population grew by 2.2 percent, finishing the year at 10,396 residents.

Two other Panhandle counties posted population losses. Shoshone County’s population declined 1.2 percent to 12,827 residents. Benewah County lost 0.8 percent of its population last year, for a total of 8,961 residents.

Shoshone County was one of five in the state where the number of deaths exceeded the number of births between 2000 and 2004. The trend reflects losses in both mining and timber jobs, Tacke said. Many young families left the area during the last two decades. Older people stayed, and the new residents moving to Shoshone County are mostly retired, she said.