There are now 858 more people in Morgan Hill than there were last year.
According to the California Department of Finance, Morgan Hill's population increased from 38,360 in 2006 to 39,218 in 2007.
The 2.2 percent increase is more than the 1.5 percent housing increase, leading state demographic specialist Daniel Sheya to speculate that some of the 2.2 percent were new births, noting a coinciding increase in persons per household from 3.034 to 3.087.
"It's a natural increase," Sheya said.
City Planning Manager Jim Rowe said the estimates were in line with the city's growth in the past and future. The city uses these figures to determine how much new housing will be allotted for new dwellings in the future. Based on the 39,218 figure, Rowe said developers would have 221 units to bid for each fiscal year, or from July 2010 to June 2011 and July 2011 to June 2012.
Of those 221 units, 20 percent are set aside for affordable housing, and another 75 will be given to projects already approved and in ongoing development.
Although the Department of Finance releases estimates yearly, the city makes determinations based on them every other year. In 2006, the city allotted 248 homes for developers to bid on for each fiscal year from July 2007 through June 2010. In 2004, the city allowed developers to bid on 255 units per year for 2006 and 2007.
"The way it works is, that number (of units) will gradually go down as we get closer and closer to that 48,000," Rowe said.
The city strikes a balance between the minimum growth required by the state, or 1,329 new units built between 2007 and 2014, and keeping the number below the city's growth control measure, which caps the population at 48,000 by 2020.
City Manager Ed Tewes said as Morgan Hill grows, the city increasingly faces a challenge to maintain service levels, especially in public safety service levels.
The city is currently mulling over how to ask November voters for more money for more police officers. The $1.5 million needed annually for about 11 new officers could be paid for by a variety of possible taxes, including a utility tax or a general tax. The city hasn't yet decided which tax to ask voters for in November.
Tewes said Morgan Hill's population increases, which have been consistently around the 2 percent mark for the past several years, further fuels the city's argument that it needs to bulk up its police department.
"As our population goes up, so do staffing needs," he said.
The Department of Finance estimates also measured Santa Clara County's population at 1.8 million residents. San Jose is home to more than half of that, at 989,496. San Jose is the third largest city in California; the city added 17,306 residents in 2007. Gilroy is home to another 51,173, up 3.2 percent from last year.
California added 490,000 people since 2006, bringing the state population to more than 38 million.
Natalie Everett Natalie Everett covers education and city issues for The Times. Reach her at (408) 779-4106, ext. 201, or neverett@morganhilltimes.com.
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"The way it works is, that number (of units) will gradually go down as we get closer and closer to that 48,000," Rowe said.
