Edmonton is one of the youngest cities in Canada, say new Statistics Canada figures.

According to Statistics Canada’s 2011 age and sex census released Tuesday, 31% of Edmontonians are between the ages of 25 to 44.

The census confirms the City of Champions is attracting young people “in the prime of their careers and family development” said John Rose, the city’s chief economist.

“Many Edmontonians are starting households, making for a very bright outlook in terms of income growth, house building and consumer spending,” said Rose.

“This is an age profile suited to continuing strong growth.”

The fact the city’s median age of 36 has remained the same over the last five years is surprising, said Rose. It’s more youthful than the national median age of 40.

There was a rise in the population of senior citizens over the age of 65, but it was offset by an increase in children under the age of five living in Edmonton, said Rose.

Edmonton’s seniors’ demographic is 11.6% — that’s well below the national rate of 15%. And at 11.6%, Alberta has the lowest portion of seniors.

Rose said Edmonton could see the population growth of kids under the age of five in city services like recreation and daycare facilities. Kids under five make up 6.2% of Edmontonians, higher that the rest of Canada at 5.6%.

“It’s not exactly a baby boom,” said Rose, “But it’s definitely a blip that Edmonton needs to be aware of.”

Among advanced G8 nations like the United States, France, or Japan, Canada has the lowest population of seniors and highest working age.

matthew.dykstra@sunmedia.ca

@SunMattDykstra