Census Numbers Shows Shifting Population within Mississauga

We recently reported that Mississauga’s population did not change much from the latest census–increasing only by around 1 per cent–but a deeper dive reveals some shifting population patterns within Mississauga when you break the city down by the current federal electoral ridings (the constituencies that are represented by federal Members of Parliament).

Here is the breakdown in population numbers between Mississauga’s six electoral ridings:

Mississauga Centre

2011 Population: 118,756

2016 Population: 124,849

Increase in population by 5.1 per cent

Mississauga East Cooksville

2011 Population: 121,792

2016 Population: 120,205

Decrease in population by 1.3 per cent

Mississauga Erin Mills

2011 Population: 117,199

2016 Population: 122,560

Increase in population by 4.6 per cent

Mississauga Lakeshore

2011 Population: 118,893

2016 Population: 117,444

Decrease in population by 1.2 per cent

Mississauga Malton

2011 Population: 118,046

2016 Population: 118,240

Increase in population by 0.2 per cent

Mississauga Streetsville

2011 Population: 118,757

2016 Population: 118,301

Decrease in population by 0.4 per cent

The modest population numbers that Mississauga had from the latest census could mean two things. Because the federal riding boundaries changed in 2015 to ensure Mississauga ridings were all within the city boundaries, shifts in population could just be from the boundary changes.

But another narrative could be that not a lot of people moved into or out of the city. Often, people declare that they have to move out of Mississauga because of high taxes, traffic congestion and the escalating cost of living–especially in regards to housing. But from these latest numbers, it seems like those people were just outliers.

Square One does have an emerging condominium community that is attracting a growing younger demographic that accounts for the population boom in that riding. Erin Mills, which tends to be populated with much newer housing on the city’s west end, has attracted more affluent families to that part of Mississauga. As for Cooksville and Lakeshore, those are ridings with long standing but older communities and there currently isn’t much development in their population centres. That would explain the population decrease as residents sought greener pastures elsewhere within Mississauga or outside of it.

As for Malton and Streetsville, they seem to have only endured miniscule changes, but I would keep an eye on Malton because that neighbourhood is rapidly reinventing itself around an aviation-based economy, so while the growth in Malton is minor, it could increase by the next census in 2021 as more housing is built in Malton.

So when you dig deeper into the census numbers and examine not only how many people are in Mississauga, but where people are moving to within Mississauga, you can see how Mississauga has changed by seeing that certain areas seem more attractive for residency than others.

Pretty interesting stuff, no?