1862. The city grew and subsequently incorporated Västertälje parish in 1946 and Östertälje parish in 1963. The city municipality expanded further in 1967, until it became the seat of the present-day Södertälje Municipality. Within the Church of Sweden, Södertälje was part of Södertälje City parish. It incorporated the western part of in 1946, and received the name (English: Södertälje parish). It has since also incorporated the parish of Tveta. Between 1973 and 2010, part of the city was part of Västertälje parish. The eastern part of Södertälje still belongs to Östertälje parish. Until 1971, the city belonged to the judicial district Södertälje Council Court. In 1971, it was changed to Södertälje District Court. Historical population figures Year, Population, Area (ha) 1950, 25 715 1960, 33 721 1965, 44 362 1970, 57 494 1975, 58 408 1980, 58 711 1990, 58 097, 2 408 1995, 57 327, 2 456 2000, 59 342, 2 479 2005, 60 279, 2 529 2010, 64 619, 2 584 2015, 70 777, 2 797 2018, 73 872, 2 851 Cityscape During the 1600s, the city was hit by two major fires; in 1630 and 1650. After the fire in 1650, the devastation was vast. All important buildings except the church were destroyed; including the school and town hall. After the fires, extensive urban planning was implemented under the leadership of Anders Torstensson, where the old irregular medieval neighbourhoods were replaced by a grid plan of streets. The 1650s plan remained largely in place until the redevelopment of the city centre in the 1960s, and still characterises many parts of the central areas. Most of the older buildings have disappeared due to city fires or demolition. The central parts of Södertälje are today mainly the neighbourhood around what is commonly referred to as called Gågatan, which is the pedestrian part of Storgatan street. Stortorget was originally the absolute centre of the city. The reason that the area would subsequently expand (mainly in a southerly direction) is largely due to the fact that the Central Railway Station was placed near the city park. Unlike most other cities in the country, no railroad has ever been drawn through Södertälje's central parts, which meant that very little central area had to be designated for tracks. Another interesting detail is that the old Södertälje largely consisted of wooden houses. It is commonly believed that this is because Södertälje never has been