Good news. Really.

Access to major air hubs with international connectivity will become increasingly relevant. While we do not believe that technology will make personal relationships obsolete, we do believe that video linkages and similar technologies will become ubiquitous. As a result, people will become more mobile during their work week, while seeking agglomerations of similar workers.

Compared to 2000, Atlanta, New York City, Chicago, Phoenix and Dallas lead the pack in our population growth forecasts on an absolute level, while Charlottesville, Santa Fe, Yuma, Yuba City and Laredo show the strongest percentage growth through 2020. Six markets appear on both top 40 growth lists through 2020: Atlanta (64%), Austin (67%), Charlotte (59%), Las Vegas (86%), Orlando (56%) and Raleigh (70%). Combined, the top 10 absolute growth markets are expected to add 17 million new people between 2000 and 2020. On the other hand, the top 10 percentage growth markets will increase in population by just 1.8 million on an aggregate basis over the same period.

Despite the arguments about “whether” the Charlottesville region “should” grow, the fact remains that we are going to grow; how we deal with this growth – infrastructure (transportation and internet), housing, equitable complement of businesses, property taxes, etc.

The report acknowledges these concerns –

Our research finds that opposition to growth is not a matter of Democrats or Republicans, nor is it highly related to income. Instead, it relates to openness to change and a competitive political environment. Those areas that have grown since 1980(controlling for the factors we have discussed above),will continue to grow because of their openness to growth.

Read even more at the Free Enterprise Forum blog.

* And by “Charlottesville” they mean “Charlottesville, Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene, Nelson (and Louisa, although technically Louisa isn’t part of the Charlottesville MSA, in reality parts of it are)”