On the rise

There are a few more neighbors on Longboat Key than there were in 2019. 

To be exact, the population of the town increased by 55 over the past year, according to the University of Florida's Bureau of Economic and Business Research, meaning that the population is 7,098.

Of course, that's not including the part-time residents, and it's unclear exactly how many snowbirds the island regularly attracts. Colloquial estimates around town put the winter population near 20,000, which the in-season traffic backs up. 

The counties shared a similar increase in residents, with Manatee adding 28 residents and Sarasota adding 27.