Construction numbers throughout 2009 showed that growth in Newton County was falling off a cliff; the Atlanta Regional Commission’s 2009 population estimates illustrate just how steep that cliff is.According to the ARC, Newton County grew by only 200 people in 2009, a far cry from the 5,000-person jump experienced as recently as 2007. The metro Atlanta region overall had its slowest growth since the 1950s — which the ARC said was "a sure sign of the national and local slowdown in homebuilding."The U.S. Census Bureau’s estimates were more favorable, showing an increase of nearly 1,600 people