ARDMORE, OK -- The U.S. Census Bureau says Ardmore's population is on a steady climb. Daniel Armbruster sat down with Chamber of Commerce President Wes Stucky, to find out why.

An air park, national chain restaurants, a growing downtown, and large manufacturing companies all mean more jobs for Ardmore and the southern Oklahoma region, and those jobs Ardmore Chamber of Commerce President Wes Stucky says are the reason most of the area is seeing population increases.

Ardmore has seen a 4% increase since 2000.

"The underlying strength of the economy is evident throughout our sales tax reports and retail sales. That basic economic strength continues to generate jobs," Stucky says.

There are manufactures in Ardmore and surrounding areas such as Michelin, Dollar Tree, Dollar General, Valero, and Best Buy just to name a few. Those companies ship their goods out, creating economic growth in.

"We can purchase only so many houses from one another. We can eat only so many hamburgers, we can do only so much of each other's laundry. But if we produce this product here in Ardmore and we're selling it around the world and thus money from outside is coming in," said Stucky.

Stucky says growing tourism to the region also helps to produce more jobs because people if people from other locations come in and spend their money here, businesses will thrive.