Jul. 2--The eight-year exodus of people from rural communities in Idaho is showing some signs of slowing down, according to U.S. Census Bureau Estimates for 2008.

Most communities in south-central Idaho even saw their populations increase slightly between June 2007 and June 2008 -- a far cry from the previous year when the combined loss in the region's rural areas was almost 2 percent.

State and regional economists attribute the reversal to a national recession that has hindered the job market in metropolitan areas like Boise, while leaving rural economies mostly un-changed.

Jan Roeser, regional economist with Idaho Department of Labor, said Minidoka and Cassia counties saw the most change -- likely caused by new businesses moving into the area.

"I expect that we will also continue to see the growth in our bedroom communities like Filer, Buhl and Kimberly," she said. "But overall, I expect that our region as a whole will continue to see decent growth."

Besides slowing the migration out of rural communities, state labor officials say the national recession reduced migration to Idaho from other states 2008.

Between mid-2007 and mid-2008, 69 of Idaho's 200 cities either experienced no population growth or modest population losses. According to agency analysts, the length and depth of the current recession that caused the Boise metropolitan area to lose 24,000 jobs during the past two years and the rest of the state to lose over 17,500 more has severely impeded the ability -- and the rationale -- for people to move.

The Census Bureau estimates that half of Idaho's overall state population growth of 27,700 occurred in 12 cities with over 20,000 residents each.

The relative stability of the Idaho population in 2008 stood in stark contrast to the 2001 recessionary period when the movement from rural to urban Idaho continued unabated until early 2007.

The combined population of the 200 rural cities in Idaho in mid-2008 was 1.04 million, up nearly 2 percent from 1.02 million in 2007.

Rural communities accounted for 68.4 percent of the total statewide population.

The largest city remained Boise with a population of 205,300, up 1.3 percent, and the smallest was Warm River in eastern Idaho, population 10.

The fastest growing city in 2008 was the town of Cambridge, which expanded 7.3 percent to 380. The largest decline was 6.7 percent in Drummond in eastern Idaho, which dropped in population from 15 to 14.

Boise added the most people at nearly 2,600 while Bonners Ferry lost the most.

Joshua Palmer may be reached at 208-735-3231or at jpalmer@magicvalley.com.

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