Butler County’s population — and therefore, its tax base — continues to trend upward.

According to population totals released earlier this month by the U.S. Census Bureau, Butler County’s population grew from 198,665 in 2023 to 199,341 in 2024. This makes Butler County the only county in Western Pennsylvania to grow in population in each year since 2020, when its population stood at 193,764.

“We anticipate that we will hit over 200,000 people by the end of 2025,” said Mark Gordon, the county’s chief of economic development and planning.

The population figure is especially significant because in Pennsylvania, a population of at least 210,000 residents will allow the county the right to apply for third-class status — a step up from Butler County’s current fourth-class status.

In Pennsylvania, counties are divided into nine classes ranging from first to eighth (with a second class and a “second class A”). The county class system allows legislation to be passed for multiple counties of similar population sizes at the same time.

This upgrade is not automatic upon reaching the 210,000 figure, as counties can choose to remain at fourth-class even after passing the threshold.

“I think that we’re going to be hitting 210,000 probably in about five years,” said County Commissioner Kevin Boozel. “We’ve been watching the population very closely.”

Commissioner Leslie Osche anticipates the county will need to look into the potential impact of becoming a third-class county, but said the county already has been adjusting to the increased interest in Butler County as a place to call home.

Heightened interest in municipalities such as Cranberry and Adams townships is expanding to Buffalo, Lancaster, Connoquenessing and Forward townships, Osche said, noting Slippery Rock also is an area that is affected by population growth.

It’s up to those municipalities to decide their fate, but managing the interest is key for those local leaders — many of who have “stepped up to the plate,” Osche said. Long-term planning and conversations about zoning will be needed at these municipalities, she continued.

“This growth is pushing forward whether you like it or not,” she said. “You either manage it, or it will run you over.”

As a county-level leader, Osche assured the county has and will continue to support municipalities prepare for population growth with resources such as the infrastructure bank, grant-writing services and local government training opportunities.

“This growth reinforces the county’s commitment to providing support for municipalities and makes it even more important for municipal leadership to be educated on these things, to do planning,” she said.

Butler County’s consistent growth in population contrasts with its neighbor to the south, Allegheny County, where population fell four straight years until 2024, when it rebounded from 1,230,138 to 1,231,814. This is still well below the county’s 2020 figure of 1,250,583.

Pennsylvania as a whole saw its population rise slightly from 13,017,721 in 2023 to 13,078,751 in 2024.

County Commissioner Kim Geyer said the growth shows anyone can find a place in Butler County to call home.

“It’s such a dynamic county. It’s very diverse,” she said. “Whether they choose to live in a suburban area, one of our beautiful rural communities or something more urban, like specifically in Cranberry Township … We have a lot to offer.”

Communities in Butler County feature regular events and foster a sense of community within their regions.

“It’s a great place to raise a family with events, places to go shop, see people, get good paying, family-sustaining jobs,” Geyer said.

Boozel said he believes Butler County has been intentional about spending time and money making itself more attractive to both residents and businesses.

“We’ve invested with municipalities over the last 10 years to build out the infrastructure to allow economic growth,” Boozel said.

As an example, Boozel cited a project to replace the water and sewer systems at the Allegheny-Clarion Valley Business Park in Allegheny Township. Bids totalling $4.8 million were awarded for the project last month.

“That was almost 700 jobs that would have been lost in northern Butler County had we not invested,” Boozel said. “If we didn’t do that, there would be no chance of any growth in that area for decades.”

Osche also noted business growth. She said the population growth is partly driven by the increased interest from businesses to move to Butler County. Those businesses want to come here because of land availability and the county’s proximity to major highways, she said.

Across the county, major multiyear road projects have aimed to streamline the flow of traffic between towns, counties and even states. These include the Freedom Road expansion project in Cranberry Township, two major safety improvement projects along Route 228 in the southern part of the county (one of which was completed this January), and the replacement of the Karns City Crossing bridge.

Combined, the county has invested $261 million into the three projects.

“When you look at the number of bridges that we have in this county, there are a little over 700 bridges,” Gordon said. “We talk about the city of Pittsburgh as the ‘City of Bridges,’ but we have 700 bridges in this county.”

Gordon touted the strength of the county’s schools, including Butler County Community College, which in 2023, was named the top community college in Pennsylvania by both Niche and BestColleges.com.

Multiple officials praised the public school systems in Butler County, including Butler Area and Seneca Valley.

“We have some tremendous superintendents,” Gordon said. “You look at Tracy Vitale at Seneca Valley, and Brian White, the superintendent of Butler, one of the most progressive there is in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”

Boozel also noted these two districts.

“People look at Butler and say, ‘Look, they have a great education system,’” Boozel said. “In fact, Seneca is expected to be the largest school district in Pennsylvania because of this growth.”

Geyer, a former Mars Area school board member, feels families have plentiful options in regard to schools, too. The public schools produce well-educated young adults, she said.

But seniors are also looking at Butler County to call home, Osche said. She reported hearing about an influx of seniors who have chose Butler County as a place to retire.

“These are charming communities for people to live in,” she said “Who wouldn’t want to retire in Zelienople?

At the municipal level, Cranberry Township and the surrounding area certainly are among the leaders in terms of growth. While populations for individual municipalities have not yet been released for 2024, estimates from the Census Bureau state Cranberry Township has grown to 34,516 residents in 2023 from 28,098 in 2010 — a 23% jump in the span of 13 years.

“I think this section of Butler County has lots of great things going for it,” Dan Santoro, Cranberry Township manager, said. “You can do just about anything you need to do from a business perspective here. The fact that we have great access to jobs, great access to high-quality shopping, and the great housing stock are reasons that people want to be here.”

Both Santoro and Gordon touted the fact that Cranberry Township houses the corporate headquarters for several major companies, including Giant Eagle, Westinghouse, and PLS Logistics.

“We saw three corporate headquarters move here in the last year,” Gordon said. “Westinghouse, PPG Architectural Coatings, and Emerson Electric have all moved to Cranberry Woods.”

In addition, in late 2023, Cranberry Township was named the ninth safest small town in the United States, and the safest small town in Pennsylvania, in a study by MoneyGeek.

“That’s something to celebrate,” Gordon said.

“We have world-class recreational facilities,” Santoro said. “So I think that brings young families that want to live somewhere in the area. Those kinds of things attract folks.”

An even more dramatic increase took place in Slippery Rock Township, which has seen a population increase of 50% in a 13-year span — from 5,614 in 2010 to 8,426 in 2023. The township is home to Slippery Rock University, which had a fall 2024 enrollment of 8,394 students.

Meanwhile, in the south of the county, Middlesex Township is also expanding rapidly, growing from 5,390 in 2010 to 7,375 in 2023 — a growth rate of 37%.

However, Boozel stressed that growth does not happen without the infrastructure in place to support it. Boozel lives in more-rural Mercer Township and is in the middle of building a house, dealing with the complexities of the building and planning processes himself.

“Some municipalities choose to stay rural. They don’t want to develop,” Boozel said. “It's very hard for an individual to build when you’ve got to put the infrastructure in. I've got to put my own water in, and I’ve got to put my own sewage in. But when we develop and we have water and infrastructure or sewage already pre-built, that is what allows growth to happen.”

Gordon said Butler County is planning to make high-speed internet accessible to at least 95% of residents by 2029, learning from their experiences from the surge in remote learning and virtual meetings necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“There’s gaps in the Moniteau district, there’s gaps in the Slippery Rock district,” Gordon said. “I would say we have maybe 20% gaps. There’s a lot of the population without service, and we’re trying to correct that.”

Meanwhile, Cranberry Township is working on an expansion to its community park which it calls Community Park North, which will turn a once-vacant plot of land into a 10-acre outdoor complex. Transportation projects also are in progress in Cranberry Township, including the aforementioned Freedom Road expansion, as well as a safety improvement project for Franklin Road.

Geyer pointed to the commissioners’ efforts to obtain additional federal funding for a final stretch of the Route 228 project. It’s crucial to secure that funding and complete that plan, she continued.

“We have to position the county for the future — the county’s future,” she said.

Eagle assignment editor Tracy Leturgey contributed to this report.