Connecticut has gained and retained some 50,000 new residents from neighboring New York.
Key Details
- The pandemic caused many people to flee to different states and Connecticut was one of the big winners from new residents.
- About 50,000 people fled from nearby New York City to Connecticut during the pandemic and are staying put despite calls by big banks and other Manhattan employers to bring workers back to the office, according to Governor Ned Lamont.
- For the time being it doesn’t seem like these transplants are going anywhere anytime soon.
Why it’s news
During the pandemic many people fled from bigger cities, especially New York City. One of the biggest recipients of new residents was Connecticut and it worked in favor of the state.
People are settling down there and enrolling kids in schools and buying houses, Governor Lamont told Bloomberg. It doesn’t look like they are going anywhere soon.
It is estimated that right now 3.61 million people live in Connecticut, and 50,000 of those came from NYC. The 50,000 estimate is based on data from the U.S. Postal Service.
During the pandemic working shifts changed and many people began working from home.
People who once commuted five days a week are now working remotely in Connecticut. The increase of orkes in the state have brought a boom of business to local stores and restaurants.
“This state has gone from boom to bust for the last 20 years,” Lamont says. “Right now most people think Connecticut’s in a much better place today than we were five years ago.”
Another thing that has helped Connecticut is stimulus funds from the pandemic. The state has pumped those funds into programs like childcare and workforce development.
People have worried about what will happen when those funds run out in the upcoming few years, but Lamont has reassured them that he will “fund those things that are working, but I’m not going to fund the things that aren’t.”