PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Cities in Hampton Roads are taking a look at out-migration. That's when or people move out from their city to other parts of Hampton Roads or the rest of the country.
Friday, News 3 asked residents in Portsmouth why they moved into their city to begin with.
"This area specifically reminds me of home, so that's what brought me here," said Joshua Johnson of Portsmouth.
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Johnson told News 3 he wasn't staying in the area long-term, though, choosing to relocate to another city in Hampton Roads.
"Why do you plan to move?" News 3 reporter Erika Craven asked.
"Change of scenery. And Portsmouth has gotten expensive as well, just for what I'm paying for with what I am getting. I also look at the crime as well," explained Johnson.
"Frankly these are reasons why people leave many areas," explained Nancy Grden, present and CEO of Hampton Roads Executive Roundtable. "Perceived cost of living, perceived safety, perceived job availability. Those are the main things."
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She added that a recent survey showed people most likely to leave are younger, childless and non-military.
"How does Hampton Roads compare to other areas of the country?" asked News 3's Erika Craven.
"So we are seeing improvements in out-migration, but you know, Hampton Roads competes with regions across the country. Examples would be Charlotte, Nashville, Charleston just to name a few," said Grden. "What we're seeing in those regions is significant population growth. So that's part of our challenge."
Grden explained that three out of four people in Hampton Roads said they expect to stay in the area, but the reasons folks would choose to leave was a discussion in Portsmouth this week. Hampton Roads Executive Roundtable presented this year's point-in-time out-migration survey to Portsmouth's Economic Development Authority.
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"First of all we don't want anyone to leave," Portsmouth Mayor Shannon Glover told News 3. "We want to retain as many folks in our city and in our region as we can. So we have got to work collaboratively with all of the organizations within our city to get the message out that we want people to stay in Portsmouth to live, work, and raise a family."
Mayor Glover said Portsmouth is trying to address out-migration in the area by making sure the public feels safe, encouraging small businesses to take root and more.
"I think it's quality of life really. For younger people especially, they have different desires and things that they want. They want a walkable downtown, they want things they can have access to, they want good restaurants."
Out-migration will continue to be monitored in Hampton Roads.
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Grden believes retention in our seven cities is important.
"This is such a critical area, particularly for young folks. We have so many growing industries in Hampton Roads that we want to make sure we have the workforce that's literally here. We also want to make sure we're promoting our region in a much better way," said Grden.
Virginia's looking at out-migration too. According to census data, since roughly 2014 the Commonwealth's seen people moving out of state at greater rates than they've moved in, though recent data shows that our out-migration appears to be slowing as of 2023 and a Census Bureau American Community Survey shows Virginia's attracting people again. That's as more than three quarters of Virginia's rural counties have seen more people move in than out.
