The Obama years have been very, very good to the Washington, D.C., area. Even as flyover country continues to resemble the Hunger Games, the imperial capital of the Democrat-Media Establishment has seen nothing but boom times. That, however, may be coming to an end:
For much of America, it was a long, slow crawl out of the Great Recession. Five years ago, auto and steel plants had shut their doors. Investments had collapsed. Foreclosures and unemployment were spiking. Yet in D.C., it was boom times.
From 2010 to 2011, the District gained about 1,300 residents a month, most of them young and well-educated. With a new mayor, a new president and an $800 billion national recovery act, the city and local developers had rolled out new bike lanes, dog parks, apartment buildings and dozens of new restaurants and sidewalk cafes.
College graduates poured into neighborhoods that had suffered from disinvestment: Shaw, Columbia Heights, NoMa and H Street NE. For a few years, this sleepy government town was brimming with reinvention. Now it seems the District’s millennial boom is grinding to a halt. Census data released last month indicates that the District’s incredible growth in young adults, ages 25 to 34, has stalled. After adding 10,430 people in that age bracket between 2010 and 2011, D.C. added a net of just 2,662 of them from 2013 to 2014. Surrounding counties, including Arlington, Montgomery and Fairfax, have become even less attractive. Each lost more millennials than they added from 2013 to 2014.
Yes, yes, I know: you’re all broke up about it. But read the whole thing; it’s sure to bring a smile to your lips and put a song in your heart.
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