The number of Ft. Collins children living in poverty has doubled over the past five years, (from 2,216 kids in 2000 to 4,301 in 2005) according to the August 30 edition of the Ft. Collins Coloradoan . This means 16.6% of children are below the poverty line. And this in a town that was recently selected as the best place to live in the U.S.
County statistics show a similar trend--over the past five years the percentage of children in poverty has increased from 7.3% to 12.2%!
Why? Family structure had a significant role in the increase. In Ft. Collins there are now 4,153 single-mother households compared to 2, 112 five years ago. In 2000 nearly 53% of Ft. Collins children in poverty were in single-mother households; however, this data was not released in the 2005 census.
Naturally, these changes are also affecting education, health care, and housing.
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