There are many ways to get to know your neighbors.  You can smile, wave, say hello, or just throw a party.  You can get to know them better by getting involved in schools, churches and other community groups, such as the Sullivan’s Gulch Neighborhood Association.  But, by far the most impersonal way to get to know your neighbors is to visit the US Census website (www.census.gov). 

Once every ten years the government tries to count everybody.  And for the next ten years we’ll all be using the 2000 Census data.  As the years go by it will become less and less reliable.  But right now, the data is very accurate.  And it’s worth noting both government and business depends upon Census data as a basis for all kinds of demographic forecasts and analysis that help identify where road improvements are needed and where to locate the next Starbucks? (If your answers were A: Broadway and 33^rd and B: right between the other two Starbucks, you would be correct!).

With preliminary data releases from the 2000 Census now available along with data from the last Census back in 1990, the problem isn’t getting data, but sifting through it all to find something meaningful.  The table below compares some population data for Multnomah County and two Census Tracts that include Sullivan’s Gulch and parts of Irvington and Hollywood. 

Summary of 2000 Population

AREA	Total Population	Percent of Population by Age (years)
		< 18	18-24	25-44	45-64	65+	Median
Mult. County	660,486	22.3	10.3	33.8	22.5	11.1	34.9
Tract 24.02	3,201	9.1	8.9	41.6	20.4	20.1	38.5
Tract 25.02	3,835	15.7	10.1	39.4	24.8	9.9	35.5
Total	7,036	12.4	9.5	40.5	22.6	15.0	37.0
Source: United State Census Bureau, 2000 Census.

Looking closely at the age ranges, when comparing Total of Census Tracts 24.02 and 25.02 to Multnomah County, our neighborhood has fewer children and teens.  The County shows 22% and SGN only has 12%. 

Other than that, there are few differences between SGN and the population make up of the County.  But, the table shows something else that’s very striking.  In the 65+-age category, Census Tract 24.02 shows 20% of the population in this range.  There are over 100 Census Tracts in the County and Census Tract 24.02 ranks the fifth highest in percent of population age 65 and older. 

For those of you who are gender focused, the Census showed 89.9 males per 100 females for both Tracts, thus the neighborhood population could be divided into 3,805.3 females and 3,230.7 males (A good reason just to round to the nearest statistically significant male or female!).

The Census website is host to even more detailed facts and figures about people living in Sullivan’s Gulch (a.k.a. Census Tract 25.02 – Block Groups 2 and 3 and Census Tract 24.02 – Block Group 2, Multnomah County, Oregon).  The boundaries of these three block groups correspond surprisingly well to our neighborhood boundaries.  Census Tract 25.02 – Block Group 2 roughly corresponds to east Sullivan’s Gulch, Census Tract 24.02 – Block Group 2 roughly corresponds to middle Sullivan’s Gulch, and Census Tract 24.02 – Block Group 3 corresponds to west Sullivan’s Gulch.  The tables below compare basic population data for the 1990 Census and 2000 Census for Sullivan’s Gulch. 

So, since 1990 the population of Sullivan’s Gulch has increased by 19.6%, or 503 human beings.  Most of that increase has been on the west side (54.9%).  Big numbers?  Well, not really. 

Recall that the increase in population has come over a ten-year period.  The average annual increase is 1.96% for the neighborhood as a whole and 5.49% for the west side.  SGNA has recently been tracking several residential development projects, one of which is the block now occupied by the Portland Ice Cream Parlor (a.k.a. Farrell’s).  If the development were to contain, say, 200 units with 2.3 people per unit that would bring in another 460 people (and optimistically, say, 230 cars).  This represents about a 45% increase in the west side population and a 37% increase in the neighborhood as a whole. 

Let’s take a look at how the neighborhood population changed in the last ten years.  The table below shows that Sullivan’s Gulch is continues to have fewer children and teens than the County as a whole.  Taken together, the middle and eastern parts of the neighborhood are closer to the composition of the County.  While the west part of the neighborhood now has significantly fewer seniors, but still has a much greater concentration than the County as a whole.