Information On Census-designated place

A census-designated place (CDP is a type of Place (United States Census Bureau) (a concentration of population) identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated place such as city town and village . CDPs are populated areas that lack separate municipal government, but which otherwise physically resemble municipal corporation places. CDPs are delineated solely to provide data for settled concentrations of population that are identifiable by name but are unincorporated area under the laws of the state in which they are located. They include small rural communities, colonia (United States) located along the U.S. border with Mexico and unincorporated resort and retirement community The boundaries of a CDP have no legal status.http://www.census.gov/geo/www/cob/pl_metadata.html#cdp United States Census Area Description] Thus, they may not always correspond with the local understanding of the area or community with the same name. However, criteria established for the United States Census, 2010 require that a CDP name "be one that is recognized and used in daily communication by the residents of the community" (not "a name developed solely for planning or other purposes") and recommend that a CDPs boundaries be mapped based on the geographic extent associated with residents use of the place name. The U.S. Census bureau states that census-designated places are not considered to be incorporated places, and that it includes census-designated places in Hawaii in its city population lists because of Hawaiis unique municipal structure.lt;/ref> In addition, census city lists from 2007 include Arlington County, Virginia s CDP in the list with the incorporated places.lt;/ref>

History

The Census Bureau reported data for some unincorporated places as early as the U.S. Census#Seventh Census of the United States though usage continued to evolve through the U.S. Census#Eleventh Census of the United States in which, for the first time, the Census mixed unincorporated places with incorporated places in its products with "town" as its label. This made it confusing to determine which of the "towns" were or were not incorporated. The United States Census, 1900 through U.S. Census#Fifteenth Census of the United States .281930.29 Censuses did not report data for unincorporated places. For the United States Census, 1940 the Census Bureau compiled a separate report of unofficial, unincorporated communities of 500 or more people. The Census Bureau officially defined this category as "unincorporated places" in the United States Census, 1950 and used that term through the 1970 Census. For the 1950 Census, these types of places were identified only outside "List of United States urban areas ". In United States Census, 1960 the Census Bureau also identified unincorporated places inside urbanized areas (except in New England , but with a population of at least 10,000. For the United States Census, 1970 the population threshold for "unincorporated places" in urbanized areas was reduced to 5,000. For the United States Census, 1980 the designation was changed to "census-designated places" and the designation was made available for places inside urbanized areas in New England. For the United States Census, 1990 the population threshold for CDPs in urbanized areas was reduced to 2,500. From 1950 through 1990, the Census Bureau specified other population requirements for unincorporated places or CDPs in Alaska Puerto Rico island areas, and Indian reservation . Minimum population criteria for CDPs were dropped with the United States Census, 2000 U.S. Bureau of the Census, http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2007/pdf/E7-6465.pdf Census Designated Place (CDP) Program for the 2010 Census — Proposed Criteria], 72 Federal Register17326-17329, April 6, 2007 The Census Bureaus Participant Statistical Areas Program (PSAP) allows designated participants to review and suggest modifications to the boundaries for CDPs.http://www.census.gov/geo/www/psap2010/psap2010_main.html "Participant Statistical Areas Program (PSAP)"], U.S. Census Bureau, accessed 2008-03-09 The PSAP was to be offered to county and municipal planning agencies during 2008.

Effects of designation and examples

The boundaries of such places may be defined in cooperation with local or tribal officials, but are not fixed, and do not affect the status of local government or incorporation; the territories thus defined are strictly statistical entities. CDP boundaries may change from one census to the next to reflect changes in settlement patterns. Further, as statistical entities, the boundaries of the CDP may not correspond with local understanding of the area with the same name. Recognized communities may be divided into two or more CDPs while on the other hand, two or more communities may be combined into one CDP. A CDP may also cover the unincorporated part of a named community where the rest lies within an incorporated place. By defining an area as a CDP, that locality then appears in the same category of census data as incorporated places. This distinguishes CDPs from other census classifications, such as minor civil division (MCDs), which are in a separate category. The population and demographics of the CDP are included in the data of county subdivisions containing the CDP. In no case is a CDP defined within the boundaries of what the Census Bureau regards to be an incorporated city, village or borough. However, the Census Bureau considers New England town in New England states and New York as well as townships in some other states as MCDs, even though they are municipal corporation in those states. Thus, CDPs may be defined within New England towns or spanning the boundaries of multiple towns.

Purpose of designation

There are a number of reasons for the CDP designation: * The area may be more urban than its surroundings, having a concentration of population with a definite residential nucleus, such as Whitmore Lake, Michigan or Hershey, Pennsylvania * A formerly incorporated place may disincorporate or be partly annexation by a neighboring town, but the former town or a part of it may still be reported by the census as a CDP by meeting criteria for a CDP. An example is the former village of Covedale, Cincinnati, Ohio compared with Covedale (CDP), Ohio * The CDP designation may apply to large military base (or parts of a military base) that are not within the boundaries of any existing community, such as Fort Campbell North, Kentucky and Fort Knox, Kentucky in Kentucky * In some cases, a CDP may be defined for the urbanized area surrounding an incorporated municipality, but which is outside the municipal boundaries, for example Greater Galesburg, Michigan or Greater Upper Marlboro, Maryland * In other cases, the boundary of an incorporated place may bisect a recognized community. An example of this is Bostonia, California which straddles the city limits of El Cajon, California The USGS places the nucleus of Bostonia within El Cajon. The Bostonia CDP covers the greater El Cajon area in unincorporated San Diego County that is generally north of that part of Bostonia within El Cajon. * The Census Bureau treats all township (United States) as unincorporated places, even in those states where townships are incorporated under state law. This is so even in those states (i.e., Indiana Michigan Minnesota New Jersey and South Dakota where the Census Bureau acknowledges that "All townships are actively functioning governmental units."http://www.census.gov/geo/www/GARM/Ch8GARM.pdf * In some states, a CDP may be defined within an incorporated municipality that (for the purposes of the census) is regarded as a minor civil division For example, towns in Massachusetts and Connecticut are incorporated municipalities, but may also include both rural and urban areas. CDPs may be defined to describe urbanized areas within such municipalities, as in the case of North Amherst, Massachusetts * Some CDPs represent an aggregation of several nearby communities, for example Shorewood-Tower Hills-Harbert, Michigan or Egypt Lake-Leto, Florida However, the Census Bureau will be discontinuing this method for the United States Census, 2010 http://www.census.gov/geo/www/psap2010/cdp_criteria.html Census Designated Place (CDP) Program for the 2010 Census - Final Criteria], [[Federal Register]] February 13, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 30), accessed December 5, 2008. * Hawaii is the only state that has no incorporated places recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau below the county level. All data for places in Hawaii reported by the census are CDPs. *In some states, the Census Bureau may designate an entire minor civil division (MCD) as a CDP (for example West Bloomfield Township, Michigan or Reading, Massachusetts . Such designations are used in states where the MCDs function with strong governmental authority and provide services equivalent to an incorporated municipality (New England, the Middle Atlantic States, Michigan, and Wisconsin). MCDs appear in a separate category in census data from places (i.e., incorporated places and CDPs); however, such MCDs strongly resemble incorporated places, and so CDPs coterminous with the MCDs are defined so that such places appear in both categories of census data. This practice will no longer be used in the 2010 United States Census

Notes

References

Search This Site

Take Earn Money Tour

Here you will learn how you can earn good money from Reach Information Portal. We are creating a take an online tour for earning money for making you people understand things better.

More Information Services
Translate This Article:

Ask Experts Suggestions
Have some queries about this content ? Feel free to participate in Experts Forum and Earn money for points earned.

Read AskE