New Online Census Application Ranks 100 Largest U.S. Cities on 150 Demographic Indicators

1/12/2004

From: Steve Bowers of the Brookings Institution Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy, 202-797-6414 or sbowers@brookings.edu; Colin Johnson of the Brookings Institution, 202-797-6310 or cjohnson@brookings.edu

WASHINGTON, Jan. 12 -- The Brookings Institution Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy has launched a new interactive application that allows Internet users to query Census 2000 data, instantly generating rankings of the largest one hundred U.S. cities on more than 150 demographic indicators.

The "Living Cities Interactive Databooks," accessible at http://www.brookings.edu/urban, provide users with the ability to create indicator-specific ranking tables or download raw Census data on population, educational attainment, race and ethnicity, employment, immigration, commuting, age, income and poverty, households and families, and housing trends during the 1990s.

The online application complements the Living Cities Databook Series, a set of twenty-three reports that provide a comprehensive portrait of the social and economic health of selected major cities during the 1990s. The databooks average seventy pages featuring dozens of charts and graphs, and are available via request or online via PDF. Databooks are available for the following cities: Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Columbus, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York, Newark, Oakland, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland, San Antonio, Seattle, and Washington, D.C.

"After radical demographic shifts altered the landscapes of cities nationwide during the 1990s, interest in Census data analysis among policymakers, business leaders, academics, social advocates, and the media has never been stronger," said Alan Berube, senior research analyst at the Brookings Institution Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy. "The 'Living Cities Interactive Databooks' make identifying trends, comparing cities, and distinguishing policy priorities an easy and intuitive process. Along with Living Cities, we are proud to offer this service free to any interested users."

Since April 2001, the Brookings Institution Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy has published nineteen reports based on analysis of Census 2000 data. Fifteen reports remain in progress and are expected to be released during 2004 as part of the ongoing Living Cities Census Series. Upcoming topics include the potential for an educated labor shortage, metropolitan immigrant gateways that emerged in the 1990s, integration of neighborhoods, distribution of household income, recent senior citizen migration, and the residential makeup of downtowns.

Living Cities: The National Community Development Initiative is a partnership of leading foundations, financial institutions, nonprofit organizations and the federal government that is committed to improving the vitality of cities and urban neighborhoods. Living Cities funds the work of community development corporations in twenty-three cities and uses the lessons of that work to engage in national research and policy development. Learn more at http://www.livingcities.org.

The Brookings Institution Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy is redefining the challenges facing metropolitan America and promoting innovative solutions to help communities grow in more inclusive, competitive, and sustainable ways. Learn more at http://www.brookings.edu/urban.