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Wichita - Largest City
in Kansas |
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As the anchor city for
the largest metropolitan area in Kansas, the
city of Wichita is home to more than 344,000
people living in neighborhoods spread over more
than 150 square miles. The Wichita Metropolitan
Statistical Area (MSA), encompassing Sedgwick,
Butler and Harvey counties, is currently
estimated at 550,000 people residing in 212,400
households. More than 80 percent of those
residents live in Wichita’s home county of
Sedgwick. A regional center of business,
commerce, healthcare and entertainment, more
than 1.25 million people live within 100 miles
of Wichita. The MSA population grew by 12.4
percent in the last 10 years, outpacing growth
in other parts of the state. The Wichita metro
area is projected to grow to more than 593,000
residents by 2005. |
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From December 1999 to June 2001, the Wichita metro
area workforce grew by nearly 8,700 persons to a total
of 294,537 persons. This was a 3.0 percent growth for
the Wichita metro area compared to the national figure
of 2.0 percent growth.
From December 1999 to June 2001, Wichita metro area
manufacturing employment grew by 1,500 persons, or 2.1
percent. During the same period, overall Kansas
manufacturing employment declined by 600 persons or 0.3
percent, and national manufacturing employment declined
by 650,000 persons or 3.5 percent.
The unemployment rate routinely averages less than
4 percent, and has exceeded the national average only
two years since 1971. In fact, since that time, the
Wichita metro area annual average unemployment rate has
averaged nearly 2 percent lower than the national rate.
Wichita’s labor force is highly skilled, in large
part due to the concentration of manufacturing firms in
the area using high technology in their methods of
design and production. The Wichita area has the second
highest concentration of manufacturing jobs and skilled
labor in the country.
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While the Wichita area
economy is strong in manufacturing, the industry
base is diverse. In fact, Wichita’s economy is
ranked 10th most diversified in a recent study
of 46 metropolitan areas in Kansas and six
states, and is also among the most stable.
Wichita area employment is segmented in the
following industry areas: services, 27%;
manufacturing, 25%; retail trade, 17%;
government, 12%; wholesale trade, 5%, with the
remaining 14% in a variety of business
categories. Despite strong community growth, the
one-way commute time in the Wichita area
averages just 18 minutes — far below many of our
regional competitors. Not only is there a myriad
of opportunities to enjoy life in Wichita, but
you don’t have to spend all your time driving to
get there!
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AREA TOP
EMPLOYERS |
1.
Cessna Aircraft Co.
2. Spirit AeroSystems Inc.
3. Raytheon Aircraft Co.
4. United States Government
5. USD 259 Wichita
6. Via Christi Health System
7. State of Kansas
8. Boeing IDS Wichita
9. City of Wichita
10. Sedgwick County
11. Bombardier Aerospace Learjet
12. Koch Industries inc.
13. Wesley Medical Center
14. Wichita State University
15. AGCO Corp. Hesston Operations
16. Catholic Diocese of Wichita
17. York International
18. USD 260 Derby
19. Wichita Clinic PA
20. Cargill Meat Solutions
21. The Coleman Co. Inc.
22. T-Mobile USA Inc.
23. USD 265 Goddard
24. AT&T Communications Inc.
25. USD 385 Andover
**Full Time Employees.
Courtesy of Wichita Business Journal 2004
Book of Lists
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9,393
8,300
6,259
5,435
5,033
4,810
3,977
3,700
3,070
2,719
2,577
2,000
1,659
1,650
1,372
1,153
1,100
1,077
1,043
975
962
869
761
757
733 |
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