Sandpoint population grows to 8,370.

SANDPOINT — A report by the U.S. Census Bureau released Tuesday states that a quarter of Idaho’s 200 cities lost population in the last two years.

The good news is the losses were limited. The largest was 84 in Mountain Home, which at more than 12,000 was the largest city and the only one over 10,000 to suffer a decline. The cumulative loss for the 52 cities was just 695.

 That compared to 90 cities that lost a cumulative total of nearly 1,500 between mid-2001 and mid-2002 during the last recession and its initial aftermath. Another 16 had no growth.

• Bonners Ferry’s population dropped 29 people from 2008-09 to 2,567.    

• Sandpoint’s population grew 68 from 2008-09 to 8,370.

• Priest River’s population dropped seven people from 2008-09 to 1,969.

• Coeur d’Alene’s population grew by 719 people from 2008-09 to 43,805.

• Dover’s population dropped one person from 2008-09 to 503 people.

• East Hope’s population dropped one person from 2008-09 to 218 people.

• Clark Fork’s population dropped two people from 2008-09 to 583 people.

• Hope’s population stayed the same from 2008-09 at 86 people.

• Kootenai population dropped one person from 2008-09 to 521 people.

• Ponderay’s population dropped three from 2008-09 to 729 people.

 The largest increase was in Meridian, which grew more than 2,100 or 3.2 percent and remained the state’s third largest city behind Boise and Nampa.

 The only change in the top 10 cities was marked by Idaho Falls gaining nearly 1,000 people to become the fourth largest city, passing Pocatello, which gained fewer than 100 to settle in fifth.

The state of Idaho’s population increased 1.2 percent from 2008-09 to 1,545,801.