Laguna Beach numbers take a dip

Laguna Beach lost 4.2% of its population in the last 10 years, according to the recently released U.S. Census, one of two coastal cities in Orange County to see a population decline.

The city had 23,727 residents April 1, 2000, and 22,723 as of April 1, 2010, a reduction of 1,004.

Laguna Beach lost 3.5% of its white population from 2000 to 2010, according to the data. The census data indicates that 7.3% of its 2010 population was Hispanic or Latino, up from 6.6% in 2000. The Asian population also increased, from 2% in 2000 to 3.5% in 2010. However, the black population saw a slight decline of .1%, from .8% in 2000 to .7% in 2010.

Dana Point had a slightly higher population reduction, with a 5% decline over the 10-year period. Dana Point had 35,110 residents in 2000 and 33,351 in 2010, a loss of 1,759.

The Orange County city that lost the most population was Laguna Woods. The 55-plus community saw a 9% population reduction, from 17,794 in 200 to 16,192 in 2010.

Irvine grew the most of any in the county, with a 48.4% increase, from 143,072 in 2000 to 212,375 in 2010.

Nearby Newport Beach also grew in the double digits, with a 21.6% increase. Newport Beach grew from 70,032 people in 2000 to 85,186 in 2010, an increase of 15,154.

The south county cities of Laguna Hills and Laguna Niguel had modest gains of 1.4% and 1.8% respectively. Laguna Hills increased from 29,939 in 2000 to 30,344 in 2010; Laguna Niguel had a population of 61,891 in 2000 and that amount increased to 62,979 in 2010.

Farther east, Lake Forest showed a large increase in population. Lake Forest increased by 31.6%, from 58,707 in 2000 to 77,264 in 2010, adding 18,557 people.

Another south county city that experienced a dramatic population increase was San Clemente, with a 27.2% increase over the past 10 years. San Clemente added 13,586 people, increasing from 49,936 to 63,522.

By contrast, San Juan Capistrano saw a modest increase of 2.3%, adding 767 residents over 10 years. San Juan Capistrano had 33,826 people in 2000 and this increased to 34,593 in 2010.

Aliso Viejo, which abuts Laguna Beach, had a reported population of 47,823. There were no statistics from 2000 to compare that to, because the city incorporated after the 2000 census.