Bay Area is fastest-growing region in state Santa Clara, Alameda counties show biggest population increases

New housing construction in Dublin is helping make the Alameda County city the third-fastest-growing in California. New housing construction in Dublin is helping make the Alameda County city the third-fastest-growing in California. Photo: Leah Millis, San Francisco Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Leah Millis, San Francisco Chronicle Image 1 of / 10 Caption Close Bay Area is fastest-growing region in state 1 / 10 Back to Gallery

The Bay Area is the fastest-growing region in the state, with San Jose's population surpassing 1 million and home construction placing Dublin among the fastest-growing cities in California, according to population estimates released Wednesday by state officials.

Overall, the Golden State added 356,000 residents last year - nearly a 1 percent increase that brings the state's total to 38.3 million. The new figures released by the state Department of Finance ranked Santa Clara and Alameda counties the two fastest-growing counties in California.

"The growth is continuing in an upward trend," said Bill Schooling, chief demographer for the state Department of Finance. "The amount of growth in the Bay Area is very interesting. The fact San Jose reached a million in population is a major milestone."

San Francisco, the state's fourth-largest city, grew by 10,600 people in 2013, a 1.3 percent increase that brings its total to 836,620 residents. State data show San Francisco added 2,377 housing units last year. All but 117 of the housing units added were apartments and condos.

Over the past four years, state data show, San Francisco's population grew by more than 31,000 people. During that time, 5,000 housing units were added, a statistic illustrating why prices for homes and apartments in the city have been driven up.

As a state, California added 59,000 housing units last year, compared with 45,000 in 2012.

L.A. still the biggest

The state's largest cities are Los Angeles, which has a population of 3.9 million, and San Diego, with a population of 1.3 million. San Jose, Santa Clara County's largest city and the third-largest in the state, added has 55,000 residents since 2010. Since last year, San Jose has gained nearly 17,000 residents.

"It's not surprising," said San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed. "We continue to grow jobs and housing. And we intend to continue to grow."

The smallest county in California is Alpine County, which added one resident last year to bring its population to 1,079. The smallest city in the state, Vernon in Los Angeles County, also added one resident in 2013, giving it 122 residents.

Prison inmate surge

Four of the six fastest-growing cities in California made the list because of an increase in the number of prison inmates housed in those cities. Those cities are McFarland in Kern County, whose population increased 8.9 percent, Chowchilla in Madera County, up by 8.7 percent, Calipatria in Imperial County, up by 5.5 percent, and Adelanto in San Bernardino County, up by 4.3 percent.

Dublin ranked as the third-fastest-growing city in 2013, following a 7.1 percent increase attributed to 1,100 new housing units.

Jacqui Diaz, spokeswoman for the city of Dublin, said the population growth has been expected and represents years of planning.

"Since 2011, we have experienced growth, but it has been measured," Diaz said. "We've got great schools, great variety of retail and other markets, and our growth is happening in a thoughtful way."

State demographers said California's overall population increases can primarily be attributed to substantially more births last year than deaths.

"In the Bay Area, there is also a lot of immigration from other countries," Schooling said.

The state data report population and housing trends for 482 California cities. Last year, all but 43 cities saw an increase in residents, with the declines typically experienced in the state's rural areas. The state releases population estimates each year for cities to use for budgeting and planning purposes. The estimates are done using housing data, driver's licenses and government records.