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WFRC seeks local review of preliminary 2027–2055 household and jobs forecast
Summary
WFRC staff previewed methods and a September review period for the 2027–2055 household and jobs forecast, explained use of county control totals from the Gardner Policy Institute, real-estate market simulation (UrbanSim) at the TAZ level, and invited city contacts to submit localized corrections via an interactive review map.
Bert Granberg, senior analyst with WFRC’s analytics group, asked jurisdictions to nominate local contacts and prepare to review a preliminary household and jobs forecast that WFRC expects to post for local comment in August and that will be open for most community review in September.
Granberg said WFRC uses county-level control totals produced by the University of Utah’s Gardner Policy Institute and distributes population, household and employment forecasts to transportation-analysis zones (TAZs) using a real-estate market model run with UrbanSim. He described a “pipeline development” database WFRC maintains to capture projects with firm timelines or single ownership that may not otherwise appear in a simulation model.
The nut graf: The forecast—used to drive the travel demand model, bike model and RTP analyses—will be shared in a map viewer so local staff can flag TAZ-level numbers that appear too high or too low; WFRC expects a preliminary forecast in August, a review window in September and a final draft by November.
Granberg described the review workflow: WFRC will send a link to an interactive viewer where reviewers can click TAZs, view projected households and jobs, and submit feedback on whether values should be revised. Staff said the review window will span roughly September, with the intent to finalize a draft in November for use in the travel-demand model and RTP development. Granberg added stakeholders may request raw GIS data and hold one-on-one review sessions.
Granberg urged jurisdictions to provide a preferred contact for the review process via chat or email; he said WFRC is starting earlier than in prior cycles to allow more engagement and better local input.
Ending: WFRC staff reiterated that the forecast is an iterative model product and that local review will be used to refine the pipeline database and model inputs prior to finalizing the forecast.
