Ohio, Mahoning Valley populations projected to drop, community leaders stepping up
Mahoning Valley - The United States is expected to be a bit more crowded within the next 25 years, but according to a study by the Ohio Department of Development, the same can't be said for Ohio. While the national population is set to grow by 17.3%, Ohio’s is set to decline.
By 2050, Ohio is projected to lose 5.7% percent of its population. Locally, Mahoning county’s population is expected to drop by over 22% and Columbiana County is expected to drop by over 24%. Trumbull County's population is also set to fall by a little more than 19%.
This is why community leaders in the Mahoning Valley are stepping up. Eastgate Regional Council, the Youngstown/Warren regional Chamber and other groups in the valley are working on a three pronged plan to help stem the population decline. The hope is to bring more people to the valley while strengthening the local workforce.
This isn’t all bad news. For the first time in 5 decades, the Mahoning Valley has seen a recent increase in population. Community leaders are hoping to continue this trend.
“The decline was economically driven. Opportunities were elsewhere. They weren't here. And that's one of the things that changed. Opportunities are here now,” said Guy Coviello, President & CEO at Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber
One way the community leaders are hoping to help is by developing a new marketing strategy.
“We need to talk about how good it is around here. Our proximity to Cleveland, to Pittsburgh, to airports. Again, the cost of living is second to none here. We hope to unveil, in the new year, a new marketing strategy and a marketing campaign that really highlights the significance of those changes in this area,” said Jim Kinnick, executive director of Eastgate Regional Council of Governments executive director.
Eastgate Regional Council and the Youngstown/Warren regional Chamber are also working on a three pronged strategy that would retain existing residents, return the workforce and bring legal immigrants to the valley.
The overall goal is to grow the population while strengthening the workforce.
“The number one goal is to make sure that our employers have enough people to fill the jobs that they have. And currently, there are about 12,000 job openings in the Mahoning Valley that we need to fill,” said Coviello.
Coviello said finding ways to stop the anticipated decline is part of the plan, which he expects to ramp up in 2025. He also said that there are other studies that are showing a more positive future for the Mahoning Valley.
“Whether you go by the Department of Developments predictions, which is a decrease, or the United Nations projects, which is an increase, we still have to [make] an all out effort to grow the populations so we can fill out the job openings and grow the tax base,” said Coviello.
