Greater Details Known About Florissant Population From Census Data

With the release of further details of the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau figures on Thursday afternoon, it’s become clear that has become a different town in the past decade.

According to the data, there has been a major shift in the racial lines of Florissant as all minority groups increased, while white residents decreased by more than 7,000 residents.

In 2000, the number of white residents in Florissant stood at 43,257, and in 2010, the Census recorded 36,148.

Florissant experienced the biggest growth in the African-American and Hispanic communities. In the past decade, the African-American population has gained more than 8,000 residents, while the Hispanic community gained more than 270 residents.

Another notable trend in the Florissant area is the amount of vacant housing. In the past decade, the number of vacant homes have more than doubled.

In 2000, the Census bureau recorded 628 vacant homes of a total 21,027 homes. Although, the number of homes grew in the past decade to 22,632, more than 1,300 homes were vacant in 2010.

The vacant homes could be due to an increase in foreclosures from a downturn in 2008 as foreclosures have persisted, according to Carol O’Mara, the City of Florissant’s Director of Housing and Community Development. 

Mayor Robert Lowery was unavailable for comment at the time of the data’s release.

Thursday’s census figures revealed that the Florissant population has grown by more than 3 percent in the past decade. The city’s rank by population, however, was knocked down two spots to No. 12 in Missouri. In 2000, Florissant was ranked as No. 10 in the state.

Although the city of Florissant picked up residents, the St. Louis County area experienced a loss of 1.7 percent, which brought the county below the 1 million mark.

The picture is not rosy for the state of Missouri overall, either. Although the state grew in population by 7 percent, it was not enough to prevent the loss of a congressional seat. The state will lose one seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.