Statistics Canada has released the 2016 census data, which reports 100,418 people living in Red Deer as of May 10th, 2016.

Red Deer’s population increased 10.9% from the previous count done in 2011. As Alberta’s third largest city, Red Deer is well positioned for new development and continued growth serving as a regional hub on the QEII Hwy. corridor.

“It is positive news to see that Red Deer’s population has outpaced the national growth rate of five per cent,” said Mayor Tara Veer. “Our City’s growth translates into more opportunities for more people in Red Deer. It stimulates business investment and attracts new investors and companies to the area. The future of Red Deer is very optimistic as we continue to pursue economic development initiatives for our community.”

Along with population growth Red Deer has shown improvement in our population density, the number of people per square kilometer, increasing from 868.4 people/km in 2011 to 958.8 people/km in 2016. This direction for growth and development is encouraging and aligns with the goals set out in the City’s Environmental Master Plan.

“This is the first of seven data releases for the 2016 Statistics Canada census” said Franklin Kutuadu, research and evaluation coordinator. “We look forward to receiving more detailed statistics about Red Deer’s population in the coming months with information collected in the long form census including information on immigration and ethnocultural diversity, housing, education and income which we can use to develop programs that best suit the needs of Red Deerians.”

For more detailed information go to http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/170208/dq170208a-eng.htm.

– Fawcett