Fredericksburg Sees Population Decline: U.S. Census Estimates

FREDERICKSBURG, VA — The City of Fredericksburg saw a decrease in the city's population last year, according to new estimates released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The city's 2015 population is estimated at 28,188, that's down nearly 200 residents from the 2014 estimate.

This is the first decline in the city's population estimate since the 2010 census, when the city had 24,286 residents.

New numbers released by the Census Bureau on Thursday include population estimates for all local cities and towns.

In Northern Virginia, the Town of Leesburg crossed the 50K population threshold for the first time, with an estimated population of 51,209.

The biggest municipality in the Commonwealth is Virginia Beach, with 452,745.

It's still much larger than any other municipality, with Norfolk, Chesapeake and Richmond all under 250,000.

Census estimates for the number of housing units for cities and counties were also released. The City of Fredericksburg saw a slight increase in housing units from 11,468 to 11,471.

There was more growth in the surrounding counties. Spotsylvania increased to 46,554 units, up more than 300 from 2014. And Stafford jumped to 47,235, a 700-unit increase.