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Some libraries are challenging traditional organizational structures (such as technical <br />services, adult services, and children's services), and moving to management and staff <br />structures designed to achieve strategic goals (advancing literacy, economic <br />development, outreach, partnerships, etc.) This may include functional reorganization <br />based on programs and populations served rather than on geography. The strategic <br />goals in this report could drive reorganization around core priorities in service delivery <br />and program development. <br />Demographic and Other Trends and Factors in the County <br />A wide variety of federal, state, county and regional data sources and reports were examined as <br />part of the investigative phase to project major trends for the County that would affect Library <br />service: <br />The County is expected to experience significant population growth by 2040, with a <br />current population of approximately 248,000 increasing to 338,000 — an increase of <br />90,000 or 36%. <br />The largest percentage population increases are expected to occur in the Hugo and Lake <br />Elmo areas, with significant growth in total numbers also occurring in Woodbury, <br />Cottage Grove, and Forest Lake. <br />The percentage of households with seniors is expected to see the largest increase. <br />Based on recent trend reports from the U.S. Census and American Community Survey, <br />the total number of children and teens is not expected to grow significantly — but will <br />remain more or less stable at current levels. (For the past eight years, the percentage of <br />total population under 19 years has decreased from 28.9% to 27.8% but the total <br />number has gone up and down and ultimately grown slightly by about 3,000 <br />individuals.) <br />There will be significantly more diversity in the County's population, expected to rise to <br />20% or more non-white in the coming decades. <br />Based on recent U.S. Census trend reports, the County will likely experience an <br />increased number of households at higher incomes, while simultaneously seeing a <br />growth in under -resourced households. (Median household income increased from <br />$66,305 in 2000 to $80,748 in 2013. Meanwhile, the percentage of households in <br />poverty during this same period increased from 2.9% to 5.8% and has not recovered <br />since the Great Recession.) <br />