DeSoto population nears 50,000

by Steve Snyder of TODAY Newspapers

DeSoto continues to lead Best Southwest cities in population, although Cedar Hill continues to have the fastest rate of growth and continues to gain ground.

The information is from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2008 population estimates.

DeSoto has an estimated population of 48,700 as of Jan. 1, with a 2008 growth rate of 1.25 percent over the last year. Cedar Hill is up to 45,600, a growth rate of 1.56 percent.

Duncanville, showing it is not yet fully occupied, grew to an estimated 38,850 residents, at a growth rate of 1.17 percent. And Lancaster is now at 36,200, with a growth rate of 1.12 percent.

Duncanville had the highest growth of the four Best Southwest cities in both the 1970s and 1980s. DeSoto was the fastest-growing city in the 1990s and Cedar Hill is this decade.

Cedar Hill's southern neighbor, Midlothian, showed explosive growth. It has an estimated population of 16,250, with an 11.68 percent growth rate. In smaller cities outside the Best Southwest, Red Oak is at 9,950 people and Glenn Heights is now at 12,100.