Chicago needs to up its game because in the very near future, Houston is likely to surpass it to become the third largest city in the United States Of America. And when I say very near future, I mean within the next 10 years.
Houston has been growing rapidly for several years now. In fact, this rise, which has been dated back to 1969, has become so ferocious that the Texan city is already on the cusp of eclipsing Chicago’s population. It’s believed that within the next eight to 10 years, Houston will finally reach that honor. In comparison to Houston’s steady rise, Chicago’s population has been dwindling for several years.
According to CNBC , official data from both states’ health departments has projected that in the year 2025 Houston will have a population of between 2.54 million and 2.7 million. Meanwhile, Chicago’s will just have the paltry sum of $2.5 million. This suggests that Houston will actually move past the Windy City at some point before 2025.
But why has Houston managed to saunter past Chicago so easily? Well, not only does it have lower taxes, but it’s boosted by great job opportunities, especially within the energy industry, or at NASA, or at the huge port, which handles more tonnage from overseas that any other port in the U.S., while there’s also a plethora of petrochemical plants on the fringes of the city too.
Plus, rather than the stereotypical view of a Texas, the city is much more liberal than in previous years, which is epitomised by the fact that it become the first city to appoint an openly lesbian Mayor, in the shape of Annie Parker.
Speaking to Reuters about the revelation regarding Houston’s imminent promotion to become the third most populated city in America, its Mayor Parker declared, “Texas has a long tradition, and Houston has it in spades, that we are not so much interested in where you are from. We want to know what you can do. We have that international mindset that the rest of the United States never saw.”
Meanwhile, Chrissy Mancini Nichols, who works as the director of research and evaluation at the Metropolitan Planning Council in Chicago, admitted to CBS that the changing of the guard was likely. She explained, “There is a link between people leaving the Chicago region for Texas, Houston, Austin, Dallas.”
However, she doesn’t believe it will last, adding, “There are few restrictions on zoning which has led to sprawl and that has already created major problems with traffic congestion,” which Mancini believes will ultimately stop people from moving there.
That just sounds like sour grapes to me though.
[Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images]
