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Community Snapshot

Total Population

Current Value

43,474

2021

Definition

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Story Behind the Curve

Southington today is a growing community, once described as "A Microcosm of America." The town is located in Hartford County, within 20 miles of Hartford and 9 miles of Waterbury, and includes the sections of Plantsville, Milldale, and Marion. The geographic area of the town is 36.8 square miles, ranking it 40th out of 169 Connecticut towns and its population is approximately 44,000. While today it is a modern residential, commercial, and industrial community, Southington is proud of its history.

Southington has 5,196 residents under the age of 9. The number of babies born annually in Southington has steadily declined, from a high of 480 in 2002 to 347 in 2010. (2010 US Census)

With regard to race and ethnicity, Southington's population in 2010 was 94.3% White; 1.5% Black or African American; 2.2% Asian American and 0.2% American Indian (2010 US Census) but is becoming more diverse.

Southington has eight public elementary schools, two public middle schools, and one public high school. In addition, there is one Catholic school (Pre-K 3 to grade 8) as well as one private Christian school (Central Christian Academy), which serves students in grades PK-12. The public elementary schools served a total of 2726 students in grades K-5 as of 1/18/2018. (Southington Board of Education, Registrar's Office)

23% of Southington's population is under 18 years old; 5.55% is under 5 years old.

Southington is fortunate to have a myriad of activities and amenities for families with young children. The town has eight parks, that encompass baseball, soccer, lacrosse and football fields; two public swimming pools; numerous child-friendly playscapes; picnic areas; walking and hiking trails; tennis courts; and a large lake called Crescent Lake, which allows users access to boating, fishing, kayaking, canoeing and sailing among others. There is also a drive-in theater -- one of the last remaining in the State of CT as well as a linear trail that is 4.1 miles long and runs from the Southington/Cheshire town line to the middle of town. There is also a dedicated dog park in Southington. Combined, these parks offer numerous activities and events for town residents and lists of these options can be found on the town's website.

Southington Chamber of Commerce: www.southingtoncoc.com

Affordable adequate housing is becoming harder to find in Southington. The annual income needed to afford the fair market rent for a two bedroom housing unit in the Hartford area in 2004 was $32,240 and in Connecticut it was $37,220. This has significantly increased to $41,520 in the Hartford area in 2012 and to $49,051 in Connecticut. Importantly, Southington's per capita income of $38,313 in 2010 (comparable to Connecticut's per capita income of $36,185) is insufficient to afford Fair Market rent for a two bedroom unit.

The total number of housing units in Southington increased 12% from 15,557 in 2000 to 17,447 in 2010. Consistently over the last decade, about 3.6% were vacant, compared to a 7.9% vacancy rate for Connecticut in 2010. Of all occupied housing units, 85% were owner occupied, compared to 69% in Connecticut.

The percent of households with income <$50,000 and paying over 30% on rent in Southington is 72.5%.

Within the population of Southington, 4.2% age under 18 lives with Income Below the Poverty Level while 4.7% age under 5 lives with the same. 2% of families in Southington live under 100% poverty level. 7.3% of families in Southington live under 200% poverty level.(CT Voices for Children)The unemployment rate in Southington was 6.6% in August 2013, while the Connecticut unemployment rate for the same time was 7.8%. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)

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