Niagara-on-the-Lake’s population has increased by 1,677 permanent residents since 2016, according to the results of the 2021 census.

That represents a 9 per cent increase from the 2016 census and makes NOTL the Niagara municipality with the third-most growth in the past five years, behind Port Colborne at 9.4 per cent, but way behind Thorold at 26.1 per cent.

NOTL's growth is 2.3 percentage points higher than the regional average of 6.7 per cent.

Virgil’s population had a slight increase to 3,008 from 2,937 residents in 2016, but specific breakdowns of where growth occurred are not fully available yet.

The number of private homes in NOTL increased by 7.7 per cent, to 8,578 from 7,964.

Further statistical breakdowns by age and area of town are yet to be released by the government. The next scheduled release of census data is April 27.