Recession puts the brakes on Chicago's population drain

The Chicago Tribune reports:

For years, Chicago lost its wealth and population as people with money moved out.

Some headed to the Sun Belt, and some to the collar counties for bargain homes.

Away they went, by the thousands each year, making it tougher for Cook County to pay its bills.

Nothing seemed to put a stopper in the drain, until now. Unlikely as it sounds, the recession has come to the rescue.

The number of people leaving Cook County has plunged by 17 percent since the latest peak in 2006, while the numbers moving in have shot up. With Chicago's high rate of births and Immigration, Cook County's population grew during 2008, reversing recent trends.

"It's not just Chicago," said Kenneth Johnson, the University of New Hampshire senior demographer who analyzed the data. "The number of people leaving the big metro areas in the Northeast and Midwest has diminished so much. I've been watching demographic trends for 30 years, and I've never seen changes like this."

You'll want to read this whole article. For more on the subject of Chicago's decline , read this. Is this a change in the trend?