Talking to NYC Demographer Joe Salvo

With a big national conversation on redistricting, Greater NY invited New York City’s expert on demographics to speak to Greater NY partners. Joseph J. Salvo, chief demographer at the New York City Department of City Planning, brought an encyclopedic knowledge of the city’s neighborhoods and demographic changes to an intimate breakfast discussion with Greater NY partners. The conversation and questions focused on what NYC needs to maintain a vital population and the importance of an accurate count on the upcoming 2020 Census.

“NYC’s boroughs are some of the
largest cities in America.”

Salvo gave an overview of demographic trends, describing NYC’s growth over the last decade as “beyond all expectations.” He said, “People come because of family ties, jobs and the city’s strong support for immigrants. But we also have bandwidth and a greater range of jobs.” As the city’s population moves from a current 8.5 million to an expected 9 million by 2040, housing and affordability have become key issues.

“Young people are the
lifeblood of New York.”

In recent growth there’s been an uptick in the number of people age 65 and older. “For a strong economy, there’s a need to balance workers with dependents. We need to maintain the city’s relative youthfulness,” said Salvo. Keeping an eye on all these trends is vital to NYC’s Department of City Planning. The other priority of Salvo’s job is planning a fair and accurate count of NYC’s population for the upcoming 2020 Census. The Census determines how to distribute billions of dollars in federal funding to local communities. It also underlies congressional representation and where election district lines are drawn. An accurate count is critical to a strong NYC.

Joseph J. Salvo is chief demographer at the NYC Department of City Planning. He has served as an advisor to the Census Bureau and the National Academy of Sciences and is a former president of the Association of Public Data Users. Salvo is currently leading a team making technical preparations for the 2020 Census. He received his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Fordham University, is a recipient of the Sloan Public Service Award from the Fund for the City of New York, and a fellow of the American Statistical Association.

Greater NY holds quarterly breakfasts for its partners with speakers
from the public, private and nonprofit sectors