WHEELING — Although the decline was more pronounced in some communities than in others, every city, town and village in the Upper Ohio Valley lost population from 2015 to 2016, according to new U.S. Census Bureau estimates.

In Belmont County, population estimates — although they declined across the board — remained relatively stable. For example, St. Clairsville, population 5,109, lost just two residents compared to last year’s estimates, while Bridgeport lost only seven residents over the last year to land at 1,791, according to the Census Bureau.

Belmont County Commissioner Mark Thomas said it’s important to remember that the estimates are just that — estimates. While he said the numbers are important to see, he doesn’t believe they should drive decision-making at the county level.

“By the very high median age of the population here, we simply have had more deaths than we have had births for many years,” Thomas said. “When we factor in that issue, coupled with younger people moving out of the area for college then employment, our population remains down. What is important for all elected officials in the entire Ohio Valley is to continue working towards laying the foundation for private-sector job creation.”

To that end, Thomas said, Belmont County continues to update infrastructure to attract companies that will create those jobs.

The population loss is a trend that leaves few local officials surprised, anymore.

“It is no secret that Wheeling’s population has been in a steady, slow decline for several generations now,” said Glenn Elliott, mayor of Wheeling, which lost an estimated 229 residents from July 1, 2015 to July 1, 2016, according to the estimates.

The city now has an estimated population of 27,375 — down from 28,486 as of the last official census in 2010, and from a high of 61,659 residents in 1930.

“During that time, our population has gotten considerably older as more and more young people have left the city seeking opportunities elsewhere,” Elliott said, noting 20 percent of Wheeling’s population was 65 or older in 2010, while the national average is 13 percent. “With such an older population, even if we were to stop every high school graduate from leaving our city tomorrow, our population numbers are going to reflect higher-than-average mortality numbers for the foreseeable future.”

The population loss is a vicious cycle the city must reverse, according to Elliott. He said doing so remains one of Wheeling City Council’s highest priorities.

“We have focused on improving our parks and recreational system. We have made revitalizing our downtown a central and recurring theme of our time in office, not only because our downtown had seen so much decline in prior decades, but also because study after study shows that millennials are seeking urban living far more than their parents and grandparents,” Elliott said. “And we have been focused on improving our city’s branding and image through a revised website and more diligent use of social media.”

Wheeling Vice Mayor Chad Thalman attributes the population decline in part to a general lack of jobs available in the area. That’s why he believes it was the right move to agree to spend $3 million in tax increment financing revenue to facilitate the sale of Ohio Valley Medical Center — which employs more than 1,000 people — to California-based Alecto Healthcare Services.

The city will use the money to renovate a parking garage adjacent to the hospital and demolish the former nurses’ residence on the property — conditions without which city officials have said Alecto would not acquire the hospital.

“It’s just as important to keep the companies and jobs that we already have as it is to attract new businesses to the area,” Thalman said.

Across the Ohio Valley, municipalities that lost at least 1 percent of their estimated population between 2015 and 2016 included Weirton, Steubenville, Moundsville, Glen Dale, New Cumberland, McMechen, Woodsfield, Chester, Follansbee and Wellsburg.

The decline was most pronounced in Follansbee and Wellsburg, where population estimates declined by almost 2 percent.