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Ohio Valley Loses Nearly 3,000 Residents in New Census Estimation

Photo by Casey Junkins Residents await an Ohio Valley Regional Transportation Authority bus at the Robert C. Byrd Intermodal Transportation Center on Main Street in downtown Wheeling.

WHEELING — Ongoing demolition of once-thriving industrial plants in Martins Ferry, Weirton and Wheeling coincides with the Upper Ohio Valley’s population falling by 2,776 residents compared to last year, U.S. Census Bureau estimates released Thursday show.

As the combined population of the six northernmost counties in West Virginia and four eastern Ohio counties dropped, the number of residents for the entire Mountain State fell by 9,951 during the 12-month period from July 2015 to July 2016.

Of the 10 local counties, only Tyler County saw a modest population increase of 19 residents during this stretch, as other counties lost anywhere from 117 to 623 residents.

“We did get an influx of people working in the oil and natural gas industry. That’s the only thing I can think of,” Tyler County Deputy Clerk Amy Glover said Thursday.

Despite the shale industry’s presence, the closure of the Powhatan No. 6 Mine, removal of portions of the former Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp. and Weirton Steel Corp. operations, the closure of anchor tenants at both the Ohio Valley and Fort Steuben malls, and the pending closure of both the Commercial Vehicle Group plant in Shadyside and the Ball Corp. plant in Weirton are just some examples of jobs that have left the area in recent years.

“The Upper Ohio Valley has been losing population for decades, thanks to the emigration of many high school graduates seeking opportunities elsewhere. This has left cities like Wheeling with a local population much older than the national average, and a lot of the current population loss we are seeing comes from the deaths of those seniors who have stayed here,” Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott said Thursday.

Walking through the Friendly City’s downtown, one will encounter signs of a potential renaissance in the form of the new headquarters for The Health Plan, new housing options at the Stone Center Lofts and Boury Lofts, as well as other projects. Still, Ohio County lost 377 residents from July 2015 to July 2016, Census Bureau officials estimate.

“We have to reverse this outflow trend, and city council has made the retention of its natives, as well as the recruitment back of those who have left, one of our highest priorities,” Elliott said, noting he appointed a special committee on retention upon taking office last year.

“And we have been focused on strategies that will incentivize economic development in and around our downtown business district while also looking to expand those housing and entertainment options so vital to our regional competitiveness,” he added.

To the north, estimates show Brooke County with 371 fewer residents and Hancock County with an estimated loss of 254 since last year.

Marshall County, home to Murray Energy Corp. coal mines and the American Electric Power Mitchell Plant, lost 333 residents during the time from, the Census estimates indicate. Wetzel County, positioned across the Ohio River from the closed Ormet Corp. aluminum smelter where many of its residents once worked, saw its population estimate drop by 173 residents.

The 2013 closure of the Ormet plant contributes greatly to Monroe County’s loss of 181 people during the period — about 1.3 percent of the county’s entire population. The end of operations at the nearby Powhatan No. 6 Mine in southern Belmont County late last year could contribute to even more of a loss.

Many in the valley are counting on the potential multi-billion-dollar PTT Global Chemical ethane cracker, which could be built along the Ohio River at Dilles Bottom in Belmont County, to help reinvigorate the entire area. If built, this project would employ thousands of construction workers for multiple years, along with hundreds of permanent employees once it is up and running.

Belmont County Commissioner Mark Thomas remains optimistic of an affirmative decision by PTT by the end of this year. In the meantime, the county is facing the loss of multiple anchor department stores at the Ohio Valley Mall, in addition to the planned permanent closure of the CVG plant in Shadyside as the Census Bureau data show the county lost an estimated 366 residents over the past year.

Thomas emphasized the nature of the Census Bureau estimates, adding he does not believe they are “very reliable.”

“I am personally never worried about yearly population estimates as they are just that, estimates. I am more concerned about laying the foundation today for years to come, including the next full 2020 Census,” Thomas said. “My best estimate simply is that we had approximately 366 more deaths than we did births in 2016 — and that is tied to our high median age population and nothing else,” he said.

Thomas said he does not believe the relatively small estimated loss would hurt the county’s ability to attract grant funding. He also said county officials are working to upgrade infrastructure to make Belmont County a place in which businesses want to develop.

To the north in Jefferson County, as efforts continue to ramp up operations at the former Wheeling-Pittsburgh Corp. steel mill now owned by ACERO Junction, the county saw the largest local decline with 623 fewer estimated residents. As a mostly rural county featuring Tappan Lake, Clendening Lake and a large portion of Piedmont Lake, Harrison County lost 117 residents, estimates show.

Tyler County was one of only eight of the 55 counties in West Virginia to gain population, with the others being Berkeley, Braxton, Jefferson, Monongalia, Morgan, Preston and Putnam. Kanawha County, home to the capital city of Charleston, remains the most populous, but lost 1,966 residents from 2015 to 2016.

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