Triumph Of The Exurbs

"Most of the growth shown by Census data has been in counties that ring big cities, with more than 80 percent of the fastest-growing areas located in Southern and Western states. The reasons for growth are as varied as the places themselves. Some are retirement havens, others are home to booming companies. But all of them are being transformed by new residents who seem to pour in every day.

Of course, population growth isn't confined to suburban boomtowns or cities in the Sunbelt and Rocky Mountains. It's affecting far-flung spots as well, culminating what demographer Robert Lang calls the 'triumph of the exurbs' -- new communities so far outside of cities that they almost stand alone."

Thanks to Chris Steins