Population Dropped in Village, Increased in Township

The 2010 U.S. Census data revealed that the overall population in the Village of Libertyville dropped 2 percent, while Libertyville Township’s population increased by 8.6 percent.

In 2010, there were a total of 20,315 residents living in the Village of Libertyville, compared with 20,742 in 2000.  In Libertyville Township, the census tallied 53,139 residents in 2010, compared with 48,904 in 2000.

“We have increased housing in the village in the past ten years so it’s surprising that the numbers have declined.  I only expected a small increase but not a decrease,” wrote Mayor Terry Weppler in an email. “The increase in the township numbers is the reason I expected an increase in the village numbers.”

Weppler says there could be two reasons for the decline in population: people having fewer children and the village’s population is aging.

Village Preparing for a Smaller Population

The village is already preparing for a population with smaller families.

“We have looked at housing that would be attractive to empty nesters and seniors.  The SchoolStreet development is meant for people whose children are leaving home and want to downsize,” Weppler wrote in an email. 

Robin Kollman, public relations facilitator for Libertyville Elementary District 70, says the district is not shocked by the decrease in population.

“We've seen enrollment decrease slightly over the last three to four years. There is not much we can do about the population decline as it's not drastic for us,” wrote Kollman in an email. “Where we can, we move teachers around and use attrition where we can to ease employment. We have not had to fire any teachers because of the drop in enrollment.”

Village, Township See Increase in Minority Population

The one area where both the village and the township saw an increase was in minority populations.

Between 2000 and 2010, the Hispanic or Latino community in the village grew 47 percent from 566 residents to 836 residents; Libertyville Township saw a 41 percent from 5,731 residents to 8,086 residents.

During that same period, the Asian population in the village grew by 22.6 percent, from 949 residents to 1,164 residents; Libertyville Township saw a 93.6 percent increase from 2,582 residents to 4,999 residents.

“We have seen an increase in the Asian population, which makes up about 5 to 6 percent of our enrollment over the last two years,” Kollman wrote in an email.