Town of Batavia's population growth driven by federal detention and GCC's housing

The release of 2010 Census data last week seemed to tell the story of a dramatic shift -- the City of Batavia shedding 791 residents and the Town of Batavia adding 894 people.

Does that mean people in the city have been calling Louis Reeb to move them to the town?

Probably not.

Data now available on the Genesee County Planning Department map tells a different tale.

The most dramatic growth for Town of Batavia hasn't come from housing developments or single-family residences -- it's driven by government and educational growth.

In 2000, there was no Federal Detention Facility in Batavia. Now there is. The census track for Federal Drive has shown a jump in residents from zero in 2000 to 612 in 2010. Those 612 residents are, presumably, inmates.

In College Village, where some students from Genesee Community College live, the population has increased from 64 in 2000 to 366 in 2010.

Those two institutions, the federal jail and GCC, seem to have brought 914 residents into the Town of Batavia.

Take away those two facilities, and it appears the town would have 20 fewer people. The overall county decline would have been 1,206 residents instead of the 291 reported in the census.

To check out the block-by-block census report for Genesee County, click here, scroll to the bottom of the text and click "ok," then on the left is a menu called "map features," click the arrows; then, scroll down the menu of check boxes and find 2000 and 2010 census blocks and check those boxes, then click the arrows to close the menu.

You can zoom in on any section using the magnifying glasses in the top menu. To pan, you need to use the pan tool. When you find an area you want to check, click the "Identify" button and then click on the block you want to select.