Arlington Comprehensive Plan Update Adopted 3-17-2015 | Page 20

City Profile
Historic Trends
Population - From the city’s founding through the Great Depression and World
War II, population growth was slow but steady. The surging post-war economy,
as well as Arlington’s location between Dallas and Fort Worth, contributed to a
dramatic population increase.
By 1960, Arlington’s population was six times larger than it was in 1950, climbing
from 7,692 to 44,775. During the decades that followed, the continued growth
of the city was contributed to the large-scale annexation of developable land,
the opening of Interstate 20 and the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport
in the mid-1970s, and a strong regional economy. The rate of city’s population
growth peaked during the 1980s. By 2010, the population was more than 47
times greater than it was in 1950.
The ethnic makeup of the City of Arlington has also changed significantly over
the last 20 years, indicating that the city has become a diverse and global city.
Historically the majority, the White population in Arlington, decreased to 59
percent in 2010. All other races and ethnicities, however, increased over the last
20 years. The Hispanic population has grown the most by nearly 77,000 people
(over 330 percent). By 2010, 27.4 percent of the city’s total population identified
themselves as being of Hispanic or Latino origin.
Housing - During the decade from 2000 to 2010, the number of total housing
units in Arlington grew by 9.5 percent. This housing unit growth rate is smaller
than the one experienced during the 1990s, (16.3 percent), but is still significant.
The geographic focus of recent residential development was south of Interstate
20. This area of the city accounted for 65 percent (11,000+ units) of construction
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