Georgetown is the fastest-growing city in the nation, report says

GEORGETOWN, Texas - New numbers show Georgetown is the fastest-growing city in the nation, and Leander isn’t far behind.

"We’re able to walk around the park, the square, enjoy some ice cream," said Roberto Gudino, who was visiting Georgetown from Arizona.

Although he and his family are just visiting right now, who knows, they just might become the city’s newest residents.

"We would consider living here in Georgetown. It’s close to Austin and still has a hometown community feel to it," said Gudino.

Apparently a lot of people have had the same idea. According to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Georgetown is the fastest growing city or town of more than 50,000 people in the country. Leander is a close second, with New Braunfels rounding out the top five.

"Just seeing the houses being built, and like the new buildings being built, it’s just really crazy," said Georgetown resident Sherlynn Villarreal.

Between July 2020 and July 2021, Georgetown’s population soared from 68,227 to 75,420, a 10.5% increase. In the same period, Leander grew from 60,965 to 67,124, a 10.1% jump.

Residents say many of these new neighbors are coming from California, but also from all over the country.

"It’s been great," said Jemme Lynn Wilks, who owns La Bella Casa with her husband.

They’ve been open since 2014, but business now is better than ever.

"It is a good thing as far as my business goes, it’s great. We’re having a lot of new people coming in," said Wilks.

Just down the block, Mikey V’s Hot Sauce recently moved to a bigger space on the square.

"We’ve needed it with the growth in the population," said Mikey V’s longtime employee Dale Carroll.

They even opened a new taco shop.

"For the past month and a half we beat sales every week, we beat the previous week," said Carroll.

But while business has been great, Carroll says it’s getting expensive to live here.

"The taxes have like gone crazy," said Carroll. "I got pushed out to Jarrell to get a house. It’s pretty nuts."

"So there’s the good, and then there’s the bad," said Wilks.

Even business owners admit the growth does bring its challenges, from infrastructure to crime to traffic.

"The downside is the traffic. It’s pretty bad," said Wilks.

"Getting to H-E-B takes like 20 minutes instead of 10 like it used to be," said Villarreal.

So, while Georgetown’s super-fast growth is a welcome economic boom, people we spoke to wouldn’t mind seeing it slow down, just a little.

"I think everybody needs to catch a breath because of how fast it’s growing. Like chill," said Villarreal.

"Maybe look at cedar park. I’m comfortable with the way it is right now,"