December/January 2009
In this Issue
Closing the Distance Between Home and Work
Renewing Hope for Small Industrial Cities
A Clearer National Perspective on Homelessness
Helping Scholars Pursue Timely Research
In the next issue of ResearchWorks
Renewing Hope for Small Industrial Cities
Smaller industrial cities have played a significant role in our country's history, and despite some economic setbacks, continue to hold promise for the future. In To Be Strong Again: Renewing the Promise in Smaller Industrial Cities, PolicyLink, a national research and action institute working with these cities to revitalize their economic bases, shares its analysis of 151 smaller industrial cities in the United States, most of which are clustered in the Northeast and Midwest.
These early centers of industry and commerce are now home to 7.4 million people, with populations in each city ranging from 15,000 to 150,000 and median household incomes falling below $35,000. After decades of neglect, these smaller industrial cities share many of the same problems as their larger industrial counterparts, including high unemployment, deteriorating infrastructure, crime, concentrated poverty, and disinvestment. They are also isolated, vulnerable to the effects of sprawling growth, and often removed from the mainstream, globalizing economy.
According to PolicyLink's analysis, reversing these conditions will require more than a one-size-fits-all, cookie-cutter approach. With limited manpower and few fiscal resources compared to their larger urban counterparts, leaders of small cities must think differently in order to effectively leverage community assets and promote equitable, sustainable development. Encouragingly, the analysis also suggests that opportunities await smaller industrial cities that can position themselves as part of a larger region, attracting individuals and businesses that prefer their small-town feel. These communities not only offer a sense of place, but are also home to "untapped human capital, neighborhoods, infrastructure, and natural assets" that serve current populations and can be leveraged for future renewal.
A Principled Framework
In its recommendations for renewal and development in these small cities, the report stresses that connections between economic success and social benefits must be forged at every turn in order to safeguard assets and cultivate opportunities. Equitable renewal and development strategies will ensure that no one is left behind, which in turn helps build a stronger, more resilient economy. These strategies must meet the needs of civic and business leaders, as well as a diverse population that includes minorities and low-income families. Leaders are encouraged to ask, "How can this program foster economic inclusion?" At the same time, the PolicyLink authors state that community development and social programs should be evaluated based on their ability to "support market recovery and competitiveness" (p. 11). The report presents other important precepts that can help foster equitable development, such as leveraging assets, prioritizing long-term progress over immediate gains, viewing problems and opportunities regionally, fostering partnerships, and making decisions in an open, transparent manner.
Within this framework, the authors advocate intervention in four areas to spur economic renewal in smaller industrial cities. These include land-use and fiscal policy, infrastructure renewal, economic revival, and neighborhood revitalization; the recommended approaches are described as follows:
- Land-use and fiscal policies must recognize the critical importance and interconnected nature of a city's fiscal health and land development policies. Communities are headed in the right direction if they systematically envision, plan, and execute reclamation and restoration of properties in distress; cooperate and strategize with neighboring jurisdictions; develop innovative financing plans coupled with reliable-return investments; and engage a wide range of stakeholders.
- Infrastructure renewal is important in shaping the areas where growth will occur. Regional interconnectivity; improving quality of life with amenities such as parks; and targeting funds for investing in infrastructure, roadways, and mass transportation are essential to strengthening the foundation of older, smaller industrial cities.
- Economic renewal in these localities should be plotted around the idea of building, leveraging, and coordinating assets on a city and regional scale. This might include structuring job training programs to better serve industry needs; improving educational attainment and investing in educational opportunities; encouraging entrepreneurship and business innovation, accountability enforcement, and cultural benefits; and finding new market niches.
- Neighborhood revitalization to develop inclusive residential areas that appeal to residents, attract investment, and support mixed-income housing is essential to renewal of small cities. Regional initiatives that involve institutions, such as hospitals and universities, are useful in neighborhood renewal efforts.
Gaining Ground
Several smaller industrial cities are gaining ground by undertaking activities that fall into PolicyLink's framework. The revitalization of Youngstown, Ohio is guided by its 2010 land-use plan, which acknowledges that the city's future economic development does not center on growth, but on improving the quality of life for its 80,000 residents. In Hartford, Connecticut, local colleges and medical centers are actively working with a nonprofit to revitalize the city's South Side neighborhoods. In the cities of Albany, Schenectady, and Troy in New York, economic renewal plans have resulted in regional educational institutions preparing local disadvantaged workers for current and emerging jobs in the nanotechnology sector. States also play a role in renewing smaller industrial cities. Ohio targets infrastructure funding to bolster existing cities, rather than fueling exurban growth. The report describes numerous other examples of activities that are helping small industrial cities revitalize their communities.
Coordinated, strategic action offers hope for renewing America's smaller industrial cities. However, PolicyLink cautions cities to take the long view and recognize that economic revitalization will not be quick or easy. To Be Strong Again: Renewing the Promise in Smaller Industrial Cities can be downloaded from PolicyLink at no cost at www.policylink.org/documents/ToBeStrongAgain.pdf.
