The population in Olneyville in 2000 was 6,495, a rise of about 11 percent from the 5,866 residents recorded in 1990. Between 1990 and 2000, the white population declined by more than 50 percent and the nonwhite population increased nearly 75 percent. The Hispanic population nearly doubled during this time.  Overall, the 2000 census reported that over one-half of the Olneyville population was Hispanic (57.4%), 13.6 percent were African American, and 7.4 percent were Asian.  Olneyville had the highest percentage of Hispanic residents among Providence neighborhoods and the highest percentage (11.8%) who reported having lived in another country or in Puerto Rico in 1995.  27.4% of Olneyville residents were linguistically isolated, the second highest percentage in the city.

        Median family income in Olneyville in 2000 was $19,676, 39% lower than the citywide median income and the lowest in Providence.  Olneyville had the second highest percentage of residents living in poverty and the third highest percentage of children under 18 living in poverty.  The incidences of poverty had risen slightly from 1990 to 2000, from 53.9% to 54.4% among children and from 37.4% to 41.4% among Olneyville residents.  The incidence of poverty among elderly residents fell from 27.9% in 1990 to 24% in 2000.  Less than half (47.7%) of all persons of age 25 or older had completed high school in 2000, the lowest rate in the city.  Olneyville also had the third highest percentage (40.9%) of households without a vehicle.

        The composition of the housing stock in Olneyville experienced slight changes over the past decade. In 2000 there were about six percent fewer housing units in Olneyville than there were in 1990. The proportion of owner-occupied units declined from 18.8 percent in 1990 to 18.2 percent in 2000, the third lowest rate in the city.  The number of vacant units in Olneyville decreased by 38.2% between 1990 and 2000.  Also according to the 2000 census, 58.9% of residents in Olneyville moved into their present housing unit within the past five years.

 

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From the 2000 census as reported by the Providence Plan   

Demographics