Cobb County’s population is expected to surpass the 1 million mark by 2050, and the majority of its residents will identify as a racial or ethnic minority.
That’s according to a report released this week by the Atlanta Regional Commission. Its 30-year forecast for the 21-county region shows the area will grow by 2.9 million people to reach 8.6 million in 2050. The ARC’s numbers for Cobb show it will grow by 295,000 people to reach 1.04 million.
Cobb will also remain the third largest county in the metro Atlanta area. Gwinnett is expected to narrowly edge out Fulton to become the region’s most populous county with 1.48 million by 2050.
ARC Executive Director Doug Hooker said the growth in metro Atlanta has been fueled by “our high quality of life and dynamic, diverse economy.”
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“But of course there’s no crystal ball, and our continued prosperity is not a certainty,” he said. “We must continue to carefully plan for the future and invest in the programs and infrastructure needed for our region to remain a great place to live.”
Broken down by race and ethnicity, Cobb’s Hispanic population will rise by 121,811 to reach 217,508, or 21% of the population by 2050. The black population will grow by 165,941 to reach 355,762, or 35%.
The total number of people who identify as Asians, other races or two or more ethnic groups will grow by 8,780 to reach 64,889, or 11% by 2050. Cobb’s white population, however, is expected to decline by 58,178 to 322,258, or 32 percent. Cobb’s white population was 52% in 2015.
READ | Southern Cobb cities see greatest growth
Cobb’s demographic shift is in line with the metro region, which will see its share of Hispanic residents reach 21% by 2050. The share of residents who identify as Asian or other will grow by 14% in 2050, compared to 8% in 2015. The number of black residents will remain at 35 percent while the white population will drop from about 47 to 31%.
The ARC says the region is also expected to grow older and more diverse. The share of people who are 75 or older will grow from 232,000 in 2015 to more than 1 million by 2050. Forsyth County will more than double its population by 2050.
Henry County is expected to follow with a growth rate of 70 percent.
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