Retirees who flock to St. George for its warm winter weather contribute. So do visitors who enjoy Zion National Park and other outdoor recreation. New research shows that Washington County’s population swells by a third at peak times such as Labor Day weekend.
The Kem C. Gardner Institute at the University of Utah released the findings on Tuesday, saying officials always knew the temporary resident population there was large — but until now had only guessed about its size. Reliable numbers could help improve planning.
It estimates that the county’s temporary population peaked at 57,069 people in 2017, equal to about a third of the permanent population of 162,592.