BRAZOS VALLEY CITED AS ONE OF THE FASTEST GROWING AREAS

  

The Brazos Valley and surrounding area has recently been recognized as one of the best and fastest growing places to live in the country.

Experts believe that this growth is partially fueled by the counties surrounding the region.

The Brazos Valley includes the following counties, Brazos, Burleson, Washington, Grimes, Madison, Leon and Robertson, and the population of these areas has grown 33.8% since 2000 and over the next five years it’s expected to climb another 6 percent.

Brazos County would not be the economic hub it is without the other counties, but Tom Wilkinson, of the Brazos Valley Council of Governments says, “You don’t have three medical facilities for just Brazos County. You can see the benefits of the growth in rural areas of Brazos County.”

Experts believe that Washington County benefits from its reputation, being that it’s the Home of Blue Bell and Blinn College.

Washington County’s population has gone up 13.5 percent since 2000

Wilkinson believe that, “There is a thriving manufacturing group and Blinn has a program to support that.

The other counties such as Burleson benefits mostly from oil and gas production, and Madison and Leon Counties benefit from their location along Interstate 45.

Out of the six outlying counties, Grimes County has seen the most population growth, percentage wise, over the last several years.

Since 2000 population has risen 13.5 percent, and that trend is expected to continue if Highway 249 is expanded from the Houston suburbs to Navasota.

All eyes are on a high speed rail project that’s gaining traction.

Wilkinson believes, “If that's within 20 miles of Bryan-College Station and within the region it's going to fuel huge economic growth, a game changer for this country.”