Economic Development and City Planning News

New Posts

2012-02-10T14:27:00.000-06:00

Most of my new posts will be made to

Manufacturing Matters

2012-02-10T14:25:00.002-06:00

Excellent article about how "Manufacturing matters by Professor Laura D’Andrea Tyson. Manufacturing is very important to our economy. Our success in finance and technology is our strong suit as a nation, but we need all parts of our economy functioning well for success. A part of a good and improving society is a job for all our citizens. We need jobs that fit the ability of all our people.

http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/10/why-manufacturing-still-matters/

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T12:36:00.005-06:00

Merry Christmas and / or Happy Holidays

http://xmashullinger.blogspot.com

The Beige Book

2011-12-15T18:50:00.003-06:00

What is the Beige Book?

The “Summary of Commentary on Current Economic Conditions by Federal Reserve District,” report commonly known as the Beige Book, is published eight times per year. Each Federal Reserve Bank gathers anecdotal information on current economic conditions in its District through reports from Bank and Branch directors and interviews with key business contacts, economists, market experts, and other sources. The Beige Book summarizes this information by District and sector. An overall summary of the twelve district reports is prepared by a designated Federal Reserve Bank on a rotating basis.

Click to Read

http://www.federalreserve.gov/FOMC/BeigeBook/2011/20111130/default.htm

http://www.economicdevelopmentnews.com/

Peoria Next

2011-11-30T18:56:00.001-06:00

Peoria NEXT is an organization of The Heartland Partnership that aims to facilitate Discovery, Innovation and Commercialization of new technologies through collaboration and creativity for economic development. The organization turned 10 years old on September 11, 2011 and has grown tremendously since its inception. Peoria NEXT named it's new CEO, Grant Brewen, in November 2011 and looks forward to conitnued growth in the technology commercialization arena.

Click to Read More:

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T10:56:00.001-06:00

Iowa Economic Development Authority

2011-11-15T07:57:00.001-06:00

The newly formed Iowa Economic Development Authority (formerly IDED) will use the best aspects of the public and private sectors to create a dynamic, results-driven partnership with programs and incentives that will meet the needs for business growth.

This model marks a new direction in economic development for the state and consists of two arms – the Iowa Economic Development Authority and the Iowa Innovation Corporation.

The authority is a quasi-government agency that replaces the existing Iowa Department of Economic Development and will perform its current duties. The authority will have a more focused set of incentives, providing maximum flexibility to meet the needs of potential employers.

The second entity, the Iowa Innovation Corporation, will serve as the private sector side of the economic development equation and will work to attract investors and investment capital. A non-profit, the IIC will solicit funds for various sources in the private sector to be used for its job creation efforts.

Iowa has set bold economic development goals for the coming years: Create 200,000 private-sector jobs and raise family incomes by 25 percent. This new approach to economic development will focus on innovation and growing high-paying jobs that will support Iowa’s future.

Advanced Manufacturing On The Rise

One key economic cluster that will help the state reach these goals is the advanced manufacturing industry. Newly released numbers by the Battelle Memorial Institute, reveal that advanced manufacturing employs 13 percent of all Iowa private-sector jobs. It also accounts for 33 percent of Iowa’s private-sector economic output and generates 78 percent of its patents. During 2009, advanced manufacturing employed around 156,000 people.

The report also identified biosciences and information technology as key areas for the state.

Included below are some additional data points from the report:

Iowa's advanced manufacturing sector remains diverse, and not overly dependent on any one sector for its economic fortunes. Containing 18 subsectors, the advanced manufacturing sector in Iowa demonstrates regional specialization in fully 14 of these.

During the recession, Iowa's advanced manufacturing sector shed 11% of its jobs; somewhat less than the national sector which dropped by nearly 12%.

Average wages for the state's advanced manufacturing sector and all of its major subsectors are greater than those for the average private sector worker. The average wage is $50,669 which is 40% higher or more than $14,000 greater per year. Among the major subsectors, aerospace has the highest average wages at $71,313 per year.

The expanding biobased products sector and the need to find biobased alternatives to foreign energy imports is a good subsector in which to leverage strengths and holds promise for future employment growth.

The "emerging potential" subclusters, that are gaining employment but have not yet reached regionally-specialized levels include "research, engineering and industrial design services" and "human biosciences"—areas that are actually supported by the other Iowa clusters of IT and bioscience.

Thanks and best,

Juan Niño

Juan.Nino@bm.com

Burson – Marsteller

713.655.3596

Economic Development Incentives

2011-09-24T10:34:00.002-05:00

Summary of Economic Development Incentive Programs in Illinois

The following information is a cursory view of Economic Development Incentives that are available to municipalities in the State of Illinois. All incentives are, foremost, at the discretion of the municipality. Municipalities should have policies in place that describe when and under what circumstances they will award incentives. Incentives should always be granted for the public good and should only be granted to make the project work. Communities should assure that, “but for” the incentive the project is not financially possible. Many times this will mean that the community reviews the pro forma of the developer to determine the level of the incentive. The community should evaluate the amount of the incentive in proportion to the financial risk of the developer.

Tax Increment Financing—65ILCS, 5/11-74.4.1 et.seq.

TIF is perhaps the best-known incentive available to communities in Illinois. When a community institutes a TIF district it freezes the existing Equalized Assessed Valuation for all taxing districts for the next twenty-three years or until the TIF dissolved. Any increase in the EAV and its resulting property tax are applied toward development of the district.

Communities can use the increment to support a myriad of economic development activities; the most common is for the development of infrastructure. In addition, TIF can write down the purchase of the land, pay for preparation of the land (including grading for drainage and demolition), and pay for the following and other costs: partial interest costs, rehabilitiaion and lease hold improvement costs, relocation costs, and landscaping, etc.

Business District—65-ILCS 5/11-74.3-1

A Business District can be established for a particular site or series of parcels. The municipality then implements an additional sales or hotel motel tax to a maximum of 1%. The proceeds from this new sales tax are applied to costs of the development of the site. Eligible costs are similar to that of TIF.

Sales Tax Revenue Sharing

Municipalities may enter into agreement to share or rebate any portion of any retailer’s occupation tax that is generated by the development for a finite period of years. The municipality must make findings related to the property and in general the abatement should serve a public purpose as creating development in adjacent areas or creating or retaining jobs, enhancing the tax base of the municipality.

Property Tax Abatement--35ILCS 200/18-165

The community can provide a maximum of $4 million dollars in tax property tax abatement within a ten-year period for commercial and industrial development. The municipality may be joined by other taxing bodies in providing this abatement. Normally there is an agreement based on all or part of the property taxes being rebated over a number of years.

Special Services Area or Special Assessment

An area is created where a special assessment is placed against property to finance certain public improvements or services. This incentive has become popular in recent years to incent the development of housing. In this case the developer requests that public infrastructure (in the past, mostly financed by the developer) be financed by the community. The community publicly finances this infrastructure at a tax-exempt rate and applies an assessment to the property. These bonds incent development by removing the costs of infrastructure.

Enterprise Zones

The Illinois Enterprise Zone Act creates a specific area jointly designated by the State and local government that allows various tax incentives and other benefits to stimulate economic activity and neighborhood revitalization.

The following are among the incentives that are available in an enterprise zone: Investment Tax Credit, construction material sales tax deduction, machinery and equipment sales tax exemption, utility tax exemption, jobs tax credit, tax abatement income tax deduction for financial institutions on loans for development in enterprise zone, corporate contribution deduction.

Revolving Loan Fund

The municipality subsidizes private loans through a revolving loan fund.

General Municipal Assistance

The municipality may provide a number of incentives for economic development in the general course of doing business. They may reduce or eliminate fees that apply toward development. They may work with the developer to minimize the time taken to process development.

State Incentives

Both the State and Urban Counties provide for Community Development Block Grant Funds or the CDAP program for the State. (See the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs Web site)

The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity administers the EDGE Tax to reduce the cost of doing business in Illinois when compared with similar costs in other states allowing for tax credits.

The Environmental Protection State has a Brownfield clean up program that offers a variety of incentives.

The Illinois Department of Transportation is administers funds for roads to support economic development.

The Illinois Development Finance Authority provides Industrial Revenue Bonds.

The State of Illinois Web site provides access to all departments and their programs.

Typical Low Interest Loan Programs

Industrial Revenue Bonds

Very large loans (must be greater that $1.5M) for significant manufacturing and industrial projects, used to acquire fixed assets. Can be issued by the City of Peoria. Can finance up to 100% of the total project costs at below-prime rates (fixed or variable terms). Call the City of Peoria's Department of Economic Development at (309) 494-8640 or get more info at www.il-fa.com/products/ind_irb.html

Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity

Enterprise Zone Participation Loan

Works much like the IFA's Participation Loan, but is limited to businesses expanding or locating in an Enterprise Zone. Funds can be used for purchase and installation of machinery and equipment, working capital, purchase of land, construction or renovation of buildings. Cannot be used for debt refinancing or contingency. For DCEO's portion of the loan, the interest rate on variable-rate loans is 2% below indexed rate. Fixed and adjustable rates are similar to US Treasury notes, plus 0-1%. Borrower cannot employ more than 500 FTEs. More info:www.illinoisbiz.biz/dceo/Bureaus/Business_Development/Loan+Programs/ezp-plp.htm.

Revolving Line of Credit

Allows businesses to borrow the amount of money needed to meet the demand and to repay the loan from the sales revenues. Line of credit established for between $10K and $750K, but not more that 25% of total project. Attractive interest rates, but all review and terms set by lead lender. Must not employ more than 500 FTEs. Three year maximum term. More info:www.illinoisbiz.biz/dceo/Bureaus/Business_Development/Loan+Programs/rloc.htm .

Manufacturing Modernization Loan

Secondary financing of between $10K and $750K for manufacturers who are retooling, upgrading machinery, or expanding. Must constitute 25% or less of total financing package. Sub-prime rates, maximum term of 10 years. More info:www.illinoisbiz.biz/dceo/Bureaus/Business_Development/Loan+Programs/mmlp.htm

Illinois State Treasurer

State Treasurer's Economic Program

The Treasurer will deposit up to $25K into the business' bank at below market rates for each full-time employee created or retained. That bank, in turn, can lend those funds to the business at below prevailing rates for a term of between 1 and 5 years. More info:www.state.il.us/treas/Programs/step.htm

Economic Recovery Loan Program

Similar to the STEP program directly above, but the limit to be deposited is up to $50K per job created or retained. More info:www.state.il.us/treas/Programs/ER.htm

US Small Business Administration

SBA 504 Loan

Provides businesses with long-term, fixed-rate financing for major fixed assets, such as land and buildings, not to exceed 40% of total financing package. Requires 10% equity participation by business. For most businesses, the loan is $50,000 per job created, up to $1.5M. For "small manufacturers", the loan can be $100,000 per job created, up to $4M. Interest rate tied to 5- and 10-year US Treasury issues. Term is 10 or 20 years. More info: www.sba.gov/financing/sbaloan/cdc504.html.

7(a) Loan Loan guaranty for prime lender. All financing is handled through the lender, with partial guaranty by SBA in case of failure to pay. Applicants must meet certain qualification set out by SBA. Maximum loan is $2M (75% guaranty). Terms: maximum of 25 years for real estate and equipment, 7 years for working capital. Interest rates may be fixed or variable and may not exceed the prime rate by a certain number of points (depends on size and term). More info: www.sba.gov/financing/sbaloan/7a.html

Business Development Fund Secondary financing, not to exceed 33% of total financing package. Theremust be at least 10% equity participation from business. City will lend $10,000 per job created and/or retained, not to exceed $150,000. Fixed interest rate 4% below prime (but not lower than 4%). The term mirrors that of the primary lender.

More info: ci.peoria.il.us/services/depts/economicdev/2004%20BDF%20app.pdf

County G.A.P. Loans Secondary financing, not to exceed 40% of total financing package. There must be at least 10% equity participation from business. County will lend $10,000 per job created or retained, not to exceed $150,000. Fixed interest rate 3% below prime (not lower than 3%). Term will be one year for each $15,000 loaned (7 years maximum for loans for inventory and working capital).

Illinois Finance Authority Participation Loan IFA will work with prime lender to purchase up to 50% ($1M max) of a loan for purchase of land or buildings, construction or renovation of buildings, and acquisition of machinery and equipment. Interest rate is 2% below the lender's rate, leading to a blended rate (lender may take up to 1% as servicing fee). 10 year maximum term (if lender term is longer, balloon payment required after 10 years). More info: www.ilfa.com/products/ind_part.html

Beth Ruyle is an Economic Development Consultant.

She can be contacted at

Bethruyle@gmail.com

309 966-1616

bethruyle.com/

Business Attraction, Expansion and Retention

2011-09-04T19:43:00.001-05:00

Attraction, Expansion and Retention

Of Businesses in Your Community

Attraction, expansion and retention of businesses for your community is vital. It is also one of the most difficult things for a community to successfully accomplish. It takes hard work, planning, and follow through.

We recommend that a community go through a formal development of their Economic Development Strategy. But most communities want to get started RIGHT NOW! So in the interim you can use the following as your strategy.

KEEP

Keep the businesses and jobs that you have

Expand the businesses you have

Enhance your community to attract new businesses

Protect and continuously improve your business environment

Keep the businesses and jobs that you have - Retention is actually the first and most important function. “Keep What You Have” is the cardinal rule of any good economic development program. And just how do you do that? Well, here are some simple to remember rules.

1. Run an efficient, honest, and friendly local government.

2. Know your business community.

3. Let your business leaders know that they are appreciated.

4. Keep your businesses informed.

5. Help your business community when you can.

Who Does Your Business Retention?

It works best if you can make business retention a focus of your entire organization. Make your employees and citizens aware of how important it is to retain the businesses you have. Your employees are especially important. Part of their function is regulatory - the police, fire and inspection departments. You need to make sure that they try to do their regulatory jobs with as little negativity as possible. Make sure that they understand that the fiscal health of the community is tied to successful businesses in the community.

If the community has a full time Economic Development professional then retention and attraction are a principle part of his or her duties. But smaller communities cannot afford a full time professional. These duties then fall to an employee or citizen or commission who performs these functions part time.

Part of the decision of who does these functions is an assessment of the individual personality and character of the person the community chooses to lead their retention program. Some employees are born salesmen with a positive mental attitude. Choosing an upbeat can do kind of employee to meet with and answer questions from your business community can work wonders. Some one who naturally networks with people and can cut through red tape to resolve problems can be key to retaining businesses.

Another way for a small community to retain businesses is to task the municipal economic development commission with this responsibility. Many of the Commission members will be local business men or women with a good knowledge of the other businesses in the community. They can network with these businesses and make sure that the business community knows they are appreciated by the municipality. And they can provide a good interface among the Village or City Council, the administration, and the Chamber of Commerce.

One simple way of showing businesses you care about them has been successfully developed by the Village of Tinley Park, Illinois. Each year the Village hosts a business breakfast where all business owners are invited. The Mayor and lead economic development Board Member give a “State of the Village” address where they let the business leaders in the community know what has been accomplished over the past year and what is planned for the future. This simple meeting helps the business community learn about the City and get to know their civic leaders. It goes a long towards keeping the business owners positive about the Village.

The City of Peoria developed a formal program entitled the Peoria Business Initiative (PBI) with the assistance of Executive Pulse. The PBI Program helps foster a business climate that encourages the retention and expansion of existing businesses in Peoria to provide quality jobs, a diverse workforce and an expanded tax base. The Department of Economic Development with other supportive agencies target existing companies and conduct on-site business visits.

Each PBI visit is an opportunity to:

Express appreciation for the company’s contribution to the local economy.

Learn more about the company’s strengths, successes, challenges and opportunities.

Gauge the company’s opinion about the local economy and recommendations for improvement.

Respond to and address any business concerns.

Click to Read IML Article

Expansion

Expand the businesses you have - Expand what you have is the second cardinal rule of a good economic development program. Your existing businesses that are successful will expand. You want them to expand in your community, increasing your tax base and providing jobs.

Your successful retention program will have helped keep your businesses in town. Helping them expand in your community is the next logical step.

So how do you do that? The things that make your community successful will encourage your existing businesses to expand in your community. You can encourage this reinvestment in a number of ways.

You can work with your Chamber of Commerce, your regional economic development agency, consultants, and University supported organizations to conduct seminars on business expansion. And you can help businesses learn about and apply for State and regional programs that will help finance business expansion.

A municipal supported low interest loan program can be effective. Peoria County and the City of Peoria each set up low interest loan programs initially funded with a Federal grant. Money is lent for business expansions at a low interest rate. The business must first obtain private financing for a major part of the expansion proving that the bank views the expansion as credit worthy. The government program is a percentage of the total expansion and is at risk first in the event of a default.

Other very important programs include Tax Increment Financing Districts, Enterprise Zones, and Business Development Districts. These programs vary substantially among different governments, but generally rebate some or all of the new taxes generated by the new development for a set period of time. The Enterprise Zone can waive the sales tax on the material for the building expansion. And the Business Development District can enact a new sales tax which can be rebated back to the business.

And keeping a positive mental attitude about your community is essential. There will always be naysayers about your community. You want to minimize the negativity and maximize the positive.

Click for the City of Peoria Programs

Attraction

Enhance your community to attract new businesses - Attracting new businesses to your community is actually what many people think is the principle part of the economic development function. As we have indicated, the first rules of economic development are to Keep What You Have and Grow What You Have. Attracting new businesses to your community is very difficult, especially if you are in a slow or no growth area of the State.

A major part of this effort is an ongoing effort to enhance your community. If your main entrance to town is an ugly strip, clean it up. And work to get dilapidated areas renewed. First impressions are vital.

The first thing you must decide is what types of businesses you should try to attract. You can go through a formal targeted industry program approach. Or you can try the more conventional approach, which we call:

SAATMACATF

Shoot At Anything That Moves And Claim Anything That Falls

This is actually what many programs do. Any time you hear of a possible interest in expansion in your region you contact the company and let them know that you are interested and invite them to visit. And ballyhoo any successes that you have.

A few years ago Mayor Jim Ardis of Peoria learned that the toy company LEGO was considering constructing a major theme park in the midwest. Attracting this theme park would have been a major coup and we went full throttle trying to land them. We invited them to town and gave them the grand tour. We found one site they were interested in and gave them our best shot at incentives. Ultimately they chose not to build in the midwest, which unfortunately happens most of the time with attraction efforts. But it still important to try while recognizing that most of your wins will be much smaller deals.

Some years ago General Motors announced that they were looking for a location for the Saturn Factory. Municipalities all over America went to great effort and expense to put forward proposals to GM. Ultimately they chose one location and the efforts of all those governments did not succeed. And that is the fate of most of these efforts.

But you still have to try. And every once in a while you win. But you have to expect a great deal of rejection, especially if you are not in a high growth area.

So how do you approach your attraction program? First designate who is running your program - is it a full time professional, or the part time effort of a staff member, or the part time effort of a Commission? Then you need to think through what types of businesses you will recruit.

You need a simple brochure. You can spend a lot of money on an expensive marketing piece. Or you can put together a simple one page flyer that says who you are, why you are a good location to locate a business, and a list of the types of incentives available. We recommend that you do both.

You need a good web site that provides information in an attractive and easy to find way. And you want input from the State, your regional economic development agency, and the business community.

Social Marketing has exploded the last few years and is a very low cost way of telling the world about the advantages of your community. There are many different ways to use the internet and social marketing to promote your business and organization. The following is one way.

You try to make your web site or blog interesting to your intended reader. You can just have entries originated by you, but it will be more interesting if you add content from other similar web sites. It takes a little time to figure how to do it, but essentially you are linking other similar web sites, blogs, twitter, facebook, linkedin and other sites to your blog. As they write new content it appears on your site.

Complex Blogs:

http://cityofpeoria.blogspot.com/

http://cityplanningnews.com/

First step for you? Create your Blog. For blogging I prefer http://blogger.com which is free and part of google, but there are numerous other free and low cost services. You can get up and blogging in a few minutes, although it will take some time to learn the tricks.

More on Social Marketing for Economic Development at:

http://socialmarketing201.blogspot.com/

Protect and continuously improve your environment - A major effort of any community must be to improve the local environment. Businesses will choose to stay in your community or locate in your community based on their assessment of the community. And if your town looks bad with poor air and water quality and visual appearance then you will only get those types of industries. So keep at it. Make your community better and more attractive.

Following these simple rules can help you KEEP Business in your community. Good luck in your business retention, expansion, and attraction efforts.

Our Web Sites

http://craighullinger.com/

http://www.linkedin.com/in/chuckeckenstahler

http://bethruyle.com/

Free on line book on Economic Development.

http://cityeconomicdevelopment.blogspot.com/

Other web sites of interest.

http://cityplanningnews.com/

http://economicdevelopmentnews.blogspot.com/

http://cityofpeoria.blogspot.com/

Economic Development Publications

2011-08-07T14:03:00.003-05:00

Economic Development Professionals Should be interested in these free publications and upcoming events

Jeff Finkle President, International Economic Development Council

I wanted to provide you with some free publications from the International Economic Development and information on some upcoming events.

A recent publication IEDC produced with the National League of Cities

The Role of Local Elected Officials in Economic Development: 10 Things You Should Know http://www.iedconline.org/Downloads/NLC_IEDC_EconDevelop10things.pdf

Webinar on August 31

A webinar is being held on Wednesday August 31. IEDC’s August webinar focuses on helping economic developers better access federal data regarding their communities. The federal government provides a plethora of data that can help economic developers gain insight into both local and regional employment, industrial, and education profiles.

Increasing Access to Federal Data: Ways to Navigate and Understand Available Data http://www.iedconline.org/?p=Federal_Data

Upcoming Annual Conference

It is still not too late to register for IEDC’s annual conference September 18-21 in Charlotte, North Carolina; this is one of the best economic development conferences each year. http://www.iedconline.org/AnnualConference/index.html

Late September Webinar on Project Feasibility

Understanding if the Project is Viable for Your Community

Wednesday, September 28, 2011 from 2:30 – 4:00 p.m. Eastern http://www.iedconline.org/?p=Project_Viability

Economic Development Finance Course in Baltimore on November 16-18 http://www.iedconline.org/?p=Training_Finance_MD

Another new report for download

New Report: Powering Up: State Assets & Barriers to Renewable Energy Growth

This is the results of 48 states on state assets for renewable energy growth. http://www.iedconline.org/?p=Powering_Up

Hope these items are of interest to you. If you know of someone that works fulltime in the field of economic development and they are not members of the International Economic Development Council, you might point them to: http://www.iedconline.org/?p=Join_IEDC

Best wishes

Jeff Finkle

Debt By Nation

2011-08-05T10:35:00.003-05:00

Well, I suppose we can at least claim that our debt is not as bad as Europe.

http://www.economist.com/blogs/dailychart/2011/07/world-debt-guide&fsrc=nwl

Economic Video For Peoria

2011-07-23T19:36:00.002-05:00

Peoria is a great place to live and work. Click on the image below to see a video about economic development in the City of Peoria.

Economic Development

Click on the the link below for more information:

http://www.ci.peoria.il.us/economic-development-department

Economic Development in Sarasota

2011-07-12T18:52:00.004-05:00

Green energy composite materials manufacturer 5D Composite Inc. to create 120 jobs with move to Sarasota County from Canada

5D Composite Inc., based in Ontario, Canada, plans to relocate part of its manufacturing operation to Sarasota County in 2011 and create 120 jobs over five years, according to Mark Huey, president and CEO of the Economic Development Corporation of Sarasot

Happy 4th of July

2011-07-02T18:13:00.004-05:00

Happy 4th of July - Independence Day

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independence_Day_(United_States)

TIF in Michigan

2011-07-02T10:54:00.000-05:00

Chuck Eckenstahler has written a excellent article explaining Tax Increment Financing in Michigan. The State is considering abolishing TIF. In this tough economic time that would be a major mistake.

Click to read the Article

Tracking the Stimulus Money

2011-03-05T17:12:00.004-06:00

The US Government maintains a web site to "track the money" spent on the economic recover. This is a good thing - we want accountability and transparency.

The site maintains a map. I checked out my two States, Florida and Illinois. Each State received over $11 billion in stimulus funds, and spent over $5 billion in funds.

So far they are equal. But then we get to the self reported number of jobs created. Illinois claims over 13,000 jobs, while Florida claims over 59,000 jobs. Was Florida over four times as successful as Illinois creating jobs, or were they just more aggressive in guestimating the numbers?

Impossible to know for sure. Probably some of both.

State Funds Received Jobs    Cost Per Job
Created
Illinois 5,900,430,000    13,000    453,879
Florida 5,436,100,000    59,844    90,838

IL v Fl Job ratio    5 to 1

Click to Read More

http://www.recovery.gov/

Inequality

2011-03-01T21:16:00.001-06:00

Economic inequality has been mounting in the United States, hitting levels not seen since the Gilded Age. There are numerous explanations for this phenomenon, ranging from the decline of unions and high-paid manufacturing jobs to the rise of globalization, of new technology, and knowledge-based work (what economists call “skill-based technical change”) and the bifurcation of the labor market into high-skill and low-skill jobs.

http://www.creativeclass.com/creative_class/2011/02/25/cities-inequality-and-wages/

Artist Relocation Program

2011-02-20T07:28:00.000-06:00

An interesting way to promote the economic redevelopment of an older city is to create an artist relocation program. The City of Paducah has one of the oldest and most successful programs, summarized on the web site below:

http://www.paducahalliance.org/artist_relocation_program.php

The following is a possible program that a city could implement. Please feel free to use it for your program.

Our city is looking for a few good artists. The city is developing an Artist Relocation Program. We want artists to move into our great community, and help us redevelop our new avante garde neighborhoods near our thriving downtown. We want quality artists everywhere, creating a lovely dynamic creative neighborhood designed by artists for artists.

We have some great redeveloping neighborhoods where an artist can find a work-live loft at an affordable cost. We have programs that provide help for artists to purchase and rehabilitate old warehouses. And we have developers who are rehabbing space designed to house artist studios and residences.

Take a look at:

All our programs http://www.peoriaed.blogspot.com/

Photos http://picasaweb.google.com/peoriamaps

Renaissance Parkhttp://www.renaissanceparkpeoria.com/

Warehousehttp://www.warehousedistrict.blogspot.com/

Outdoor Sculpture http://www.artspartners.net/

Home buying assistancehttp://www.reachillinois.org/employers.asp?id=187

Affordable Homeshttp://www.eppraisal.com/NationalMSA.aspx

Great Rentals http://zerlaproperties.com/

______________________________________

Check out the Sioux Falls, South Dakota Sculpture program at:

http://www.sculpturewalksiouxfalls.com/

LINKS
http://www.artspartners.net/

http://www.apollopeoria.com

http://www.prairiecenterofthearts.org/

http://purposedrivenart.org
http://www.peoriaartguild.org/
www.ci.peoria.il.us/arts-and-culture-recreation
http://www.lakeview-museum.org/
www.explorepeoria.com/pages/peoriaartsnonprofits
www.ci.peoria.il.us/parks
http://www.peoriahistoricalsociety.org/
http://www.peoriasymphony.org/
http://www.peoriariverfront.com/
http://www.peoriamagazines.com/
http://www.fineartssociety.net/
http://www.cityofeastpeoria.com/
http://www.wpamurals.com/
http://www.peoriareads.org/
http://www.teamdanceillinois.org/
http://www.artsalliance.org/
http://www.photolinks.com/

http://www.discoverourtown.com/
http://www.peoriahistoricalsociety.org/
http://www.peoriaprogress.com/
http://www.peorianext.org/
http://www.artic.edu/
http://www.artsalliance/

http://www.peoria.org/
http://www.sculpture.org/portfolio/sculptorPage.php?sculptor_id=1000508

APA Economic Development

2011-02-14T15:52:00.002-06:00

Dear Craig:

Our latest blog post on Joan Fitzgerald's 2010 book, Emerald Cities: Urban Sustainability and Economic Development, is by Bob Lewis, AICP, Chair of the Economic Development Division. Bob's company, Development Strategies, Inc., is involved in an experimental venture that the City of St. Louis is embarking to effectively determine how it can adapt to the themes raised by Ms. Fitzgerald’s book. "I’m thankful that I read Emerald Citiesbefore the City called me!" he says. "You should read it too — just in case..."

Development Strategies, Inc.'s role in the St. Louis project — being called the Climate Sustainability Plan — is to identify metrics that economically justify going green. Although "sustainable" development is a movement with immense momentum around the globe today, it is a movement that still has to prove its economic value.

Thus the need for economic metrics. The questions become, "Does this save money?" and "How?" Inquiring residents and businesses — who are asked to pay for going green — will want to know.

A quote from the book calls cities "the Saudi Arabia of energy efficiency." As Bob says, in other words, "there’s gold in them thar cities. All we have to do is find ways to mine it." What savings do we get from greener approaches to managing and operating our cities? What added economic development do we attract by going green, or at least greener?

To read the full blog post, see:

http://apaeconomicdevelopment.blogspot.com

We encourage you to post comments!

As always, please contact me if you have any questions or concerns regarding the blog, or wish to contribute materials.

Shana R. Johnson
EDD Secretary-Treasurer

---

Shana R. Johnson
Principal, Civic Synergy, LLC
7001 Loisdale Road, Suite C
Springfield, VA 22150

Email: sjohnson@civicsynergyllc.com
Web: http://www.civicsynergyllc.com
Blog: http://apaeconomicdevelopment.blogspot.com
Twitter: @shana_johnson

Inner Suburbs Short of Housing

2011-02-14T15:17:00.004-06:00

"Inner suburbs will run short of housing, ULI says"

Author:

Philip Langdon

New Urban Network

"The appeal of close-in suburban neighborhoods is rising because of their proximity to major employment centers and because of transit options, Patrick L. Phillips, CEO of the Urban Land Institute, said Feb. 12 in a program on “Sustainable Suburbs: Re-Imagining the Inner Ring” sponsored by the North Carolina State University College of Design and the Raleigh Department of City Planning."

Click to read the article:

Freakecomics

2011-02-08T07:53:00.000-06:00

Here’s the Steelers-Packers Contest Answer

By STEPHEN J. DUBNER

We ran a contest yesterday with a simple question: what do the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers have in common? There are many correct answers, but there was one in particular I was looking for. I was worried it might be hard, and I was ready to step in and give a clue. But I was wrong to be worried. The post went up at 10:30 a.m.; the first correct answer came in at 10:31 a.m., in the very first comment:

Click to read the rest of the story

Free Book

2011-01-27T15:00:00.002-06:00

City Economic Development

We are writing a free on line book on City Economic Development. Your review and improvements will be appreciated.

The book is interactive and has a place for you to add content. Please let us know what you think.

http://cityeconomicdevelopment.blogspot.com/

Good News - Jobless Claims Drop

2011-01-20T19:37:00.001-06:00

	Fed Flash Diane Swonk, Chief Economist, Mesirow Financial

Jobless Claims Plummet

First-time jobless claims dropped to 404,000 from 441,000 in the most recent week, while continuing claims fell to the lowest level since October of 2008. The more reliable, four-week moving average also declined, to 411,750.

Click to Read More:

Illinois Development Council

2011-01-14T11:22:00.002-06:00

Forward this mailing

Trends, Myths, and Opportunities
Economic Development in 2011
Agenda Panelist Biographies

This year's Metro Meeting will take place at the Hilton Hotel in Lisle, IL (NEW LOCATION).
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ON LINE. For a registration form CLICK HERE.



	Agenda January 24th Metro Meeting

Agenda January 24, 2011

9:30
Introductions

Economic Overview: 9:40 to 10:15
Economist, TBD
Q&A

Best Practices Panel: 10:15 to 11:15
Bruce Knight, AICP, Planning Director, Champaign, Illinois
Matt Frank, AICP, Economic Development Coordinator, Village of Schaumburg
Scott Niehaus, Village Manager, Village of Tinley Park
Q&A

11:15 to 11:25
Break

Developers Panel: 11:25 to 12:25
Chris Gary, Vice President Industrial Services, NAI Hiffman
Shaun W. Frankfurt, Senior Managing Director, TrammelCrow Company
McKim Barnes, Senior Vice President, Research and Analysis, Draper and Kramer, Inc.
Fred Heichman, Vice President and Director of Leasing, Inland Real Estate

Organizational Updates: CMAP, IDC, APA, ILCMA, DCEO 12:25 to 12:55
DCEO Representatives: Kevin Bell, Robert Anderson, and Gabe Sanders

Lunch and Networking: 1:00 to 2:00

This year's Metro Meeting will take place at the Hilton Hotel in Lisle, IL.
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ON LINE. For a registration form CLICK HERE.



	Panelist Biographies

Best Practices Panel

Bruce Knight, AICP, Planning Director, Champaign, Illinois
Bruce Knight is Planning Director of Champaign, Illinois (1988-present), and an adjunct lecturer at the University of Illinois in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning. He is currently serving as the President of the American Planning Association, an independent, not-for-profit organization that provides leadership in the development of vital communities by advocating excellence in community planning, promoting education and citizen empowerment and providing the tools and support necessary to meet the challenges of growth and change.

Matt Frank, AICP, Economic Development Coordinator, Village of Schaumburg
Matt Frank is a graduate of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign with a degree in Urban and Regional Planning. Matt worked as a Planner for the DuPage Community Development Department for several years before accepting a position with the Village of Schaumburg where he has worked for the last 10 years as the Economic Development Coordinator. Matt is a member of the American Planning Association, American Institute of Certified Planners, and International Council of Shopping Centers. Matt also serves on the Board of Directors for the Schaumburg Business Association and the Schaumburg Park Foundation.

Scott Niehaus, Village Manager, Village of Tinley Park
Scott Niehaus has been the Village Manager in Tinley Park since 2003 where he currently serves as chief administrative officer of a community with 175 full-time employees, 275 part-time employees, 900 businesses and 55,000 residents. Before becoming village manager he was the Assistant Village Manager in Elk Grove Village from 1994-1998 concentrating on day to day management for a full service community including responsibility over planning and development, budget preparation, grant writing and special events. He then served as Assistant Village Manager in Tinley Park from 1999 until 2003 where his added responsibilities included downtown redevelopment and construction management for Zabrocki Plaza, a new Metra station and a new Library. Mr. Niehaus received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Augustana College and an MPA from Northern Illinois University.
.
Developers Panel

Chris Gary, Vice President Industrial Services, NAI Hiffman
Chris Gary is a Vice President with NAI Hiffman. Chris specializes in industrial real estate including representing property owners, tenants and buyers in the greater Chicagoland area helping to create real estate solutions. Chris’ primary areas of focus include properties within the Southern Chicago suburban industrial markets and Indiana. In his career, Chris has completed 140 deals, totaling 8,500,000 square feet and over $155,000,000 in value. Among the companies Chris has represented in sale and lease transactions are Ashley Capital, CenterPoint Properties, First Industrial, ML Realty, Madison Partners, Becknell Development, Lincoln Financial, DP Partners, Jacobson Warehouse, A. Finkl & Sons, Leeco Steel, Folding Guard, Insulation Fabricators, Trifinity and BP Amoco.

Shaun W. Frankfurt, Senior Managing Director, TrammelCrow Company
Shaun W. Frankfurt serves as Senior Managing Director with over twenty-two years of commercial real estate experience for Trammell Crow Company. He is responsible for real estate development and investment opportunities for TCC in Chicago and the surrounding states. Mr. Frankfurt’s development resume includes office, industrial, student housing, retail, medical office buildings, surgery centers, laboratories and infrastructure projects. He has completed special use projects as well as iconic real estate in multiple markets. In his capacity as Managing Director, he is responsible for setting business unit strategy, financing and overall business activity for the Chicago Team.

Fred Heichman, Vice President and Director of Leasing, Inland Real Estate
Fred Heichman has been appointed vice president and director of leasing for Inland Real Estate Corp., where he will direct leasing for more than 14 million square feet of mall space. Before joining Inland, Heichman was vice president of leasing for Centro Properties Group, where he oversaw leasing at 70 shopping centers in the Central U.S. Heichman also held the same position at Mid-America Development Partners and Tucker Development previously. Heichman holds a Senior Certified Leasing Specialist designation from the International Council of Shopping Centers.

McKim Barnes, Senior Vice President, Research and Analysis, Draper and Kramer, Inc.
Kim Barnes directs Draper and Kramer’s Research and Analysis Department, which provides research and analysis services to all of Draper & Kramer’s operating departments. He has been in the real estate industry for 35 years. He has been an analyst in a consulting firm, commercial mortgage broker, an investor, and a research department director. Mr. Barnes came to Draper and Kramer in 1997. Prior to that he headed the Research Department at Mid-North Financial Services, a commercial mortgage banking firm then headquartered in Chicago (Draper and Kramer purchased Mid-North in 2004). Mr. Barnes holds a BA degree from Stanford University, a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Chicago, and a Master of City Planning degree from Harvard University.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ON LINE. For a registration form CLICK HERE.

225 East Cook Street; Springfield, IL 62704
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Chicago Southland Economic Development Meeting

2011-01-13T11:49:00.000-06:00

Agenda for CSEDC Quarterly Forum - January 28, 2011

Premier

Investors

Mi-Jack

Pace

Sustaining

Investors

AT&T

ComEd

First Midwest Bank

Matteson

MetroSouth Medical Center

Nicor

Park Forest

Riverdale

Richton Park

South Holland

Contributing

Investors

BDI

CN Railroad

Centerpoint - Governors State

CenterPoint

Properties

Comcast

Chicago Building

Trade Council

Crete

Gallagher Asphalt

Homewood

Horton

Illinois Trucking

Association

Land Resource

Management Group

Land Vision Inc.

Oak Forest

Robinson Engineering

Sandrick Law Firm

State Farm Insurance

Stevenson Crane

Tinley Park

Union Pacific Railroad

Weaver Boos

Wildman Harrold

Associate

Investors

Baxter Woodman

CB Richard Ellis

Chicago Jobs Council

Enginex Environmental Engineering

Environmental Protection Industries

Village of Flossmoor

Harvey Alderman Chuck Giviens

Hitchcock Design Group

JF New and Associates

JJR. LLC

Musada, Funai, Eifert &

Mitchell, Ltd.
Village of Olympia Fields
Paine/Wetzel Associates

Prairie State College
Prime/CCP Development Partners LLC

Village of South Chicago Heights

Village of Riverdale

State Farm Insurance

Economic Development Partners

Center for Neighborhood Technology

Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning

Chicago Southland Convention and Visitors Bureau

Chicago Southland Mayors and Managers

Chicago Southland Chamber of Commerce

Cook County, Delta Institute

GovernorsStateUniversity

Metropolitan Planning Council

Grantors:

CookCounty

Illinois Department of Transportation

US Environmental Protection Agency

Regional Transportation Authority

To Become an Investor and show your support for the growth and development of our region, click here.

Below is the updated agenda for the Chicago Southland Economic Development Corporation Quarterly Forum. We look forward to seeing you and your guests.

Quarterly Forum, January 28

Hosted by South Suburban College and

The Village of Riverdale

8:30 a.m. - 10:30

South Suburban College

15800 South State, South Holland

Please register at our Forum website, click here or by replying to this email.

Forum Agenda

Economic Development Opportunities in Riverdale

Mayor Deyon Dean

With extraordinary connections to rail and water, Riverdale is poised for industrial, commercial, and residential redevelopment. Using the new Lake Riverdale Implementation Plan as a guide, Mayor Deyon Dean will present information about available industrial, commercial, and residential redevelopment opportunities in Riverdale.

South Suburban College Economic Development Initiatives

George Dammer, President

The president of South Suburban College will present a video and highlights of their Rebound Program, which is helping unemployed individuals become retrained and working again. In addition, he will discuss the college's role in various regional economic development programs.

South Suburban Transit Corridors

Ron Lanz, Landvision Inc.

The Chicago Southland Transit corridors are a vital asset to the region. With an extensive network of routes, relatively high frequencies of service, and lower commute times, the south suburban transit corridors provide employees with easy and affordable access to Chicago's downtown loop. They also provide the City of Chicago's residents and workforce with access to affordable and accessible housing alternatives while maintaining an exceptional quality of life. These positive attributes, combined with the accompanying quality-of-life benefits make the Southland Transit Region a great opportunity for the development community. Join us for a discussion about the transit assets of this metropolitan sub-region and find out how you can contribute toward and benefit from its potential.

Calumet Stewardship Initiative in the Chicago Southland

Bike, Paddle,Walk and Bird the Significant Natural Areas of the Southland

Eric Neague, CSEDC Board Member

Mark Bouman, Professor, Chicago State University

Laurel Ross, The Field Museum

This group presentation will discuss the green assets and the natural areas of the Chicago Southland contribute to quality economic development while better managing water throughout the region. Eric Neagu, board member CSEDC; Professor Mark Bouman, Chicago State University; and Laurel Ross, The Field Museum, will be discussing on-going efforts, completed plans, and promote a Green Infrastructure Vision workshop.

Cost of Doing Business In Illinois

Panel to be Announced

A panel will discuss the recent state income tax increases an assess the impact on our work for business development in the Chicago Southland. Please visit our cost of doing business web page and help us make it as useful as possible. http://www2.chicagosouthlandedc.org/advantages/cost-of-doing-business-southern-cook-county-vs-lake-county-indiana/#Illinois & Indiana Business Tax Comparison

Register by clicking here

Exhibit Tables Available

$50 or Free for CSEDC Investors.

To reserve a table, click here.

You Can Help Promote and Grow our Region

If you attend any of our Quarterly Forums, then you know there are some very exciting economic development projects taking place within our region. The CSEDC needs your help to keep the momentum going and to help market these opportunities to various stakeholders. Your investment provides CSEDC the fuel needed to continue leveraging projects to include:

The Green Transit, Intermodal, Manufacturing Environment (TIME) Zone

LogisticsParkCalumet

Transit Oriented Development Corridor

Calumet Renewable Auto, Rail, Manufacturing Center

Chicago Southland Vision 2020

Southeast Service Metra Line

Metra Extension to Peotone

South Suburban Airport

Illiana Expressway

I-57/I-294 Intersection

Calumet Sag Bike Trail;

intermodal developments in Crete, Harvey and Dolton.

Take a look at our web site to see many other projects underway that focus on retail development, transit, rail, tourism, and sustainable business, housing and land development. Information can be found at www.chicagosouthlandsbdc.org orwww.chicagosouthlandedc.org.

Click here for more information and to make your investment in support of the growth of our region.

Visit the following sites to learn more about the many opportunties and initiatives of the Chicago Southland Economic Development Corporation.

www.chicagosouthlandedc.org

www.chicagosouthlandsbdc.org

Or, contact Reggie Greenwood at 708-922-4671 · reggie.greenwood@ssmma.org

Newsletter published by ZPR & Consulting. Submit your feedback or news tolisa@zprconsulting.com

Economic Revitalization of Detroit

2011-01-11T14:04:00.000-06:00

Rebuilding the Motor City.

http://www.freep.com/article/20110109/NEWS01/101090450/1003/news01/Detroits-profile-grows-as-investors-young-professionals-return-to-city

Chicago Southland Economic Development

2011-01-06T05:33:00.002-06:00

CSEDC Quarterly Forum - January 28, 2011

Energy Efficiency Forum - January 19

Premier

Investors

Mi-Jack

Pace

Sustaining

Investors

AT&T

ComEd

First Midwest Bank

Matteson

MetroSouth Medical Center

Nicor

Park Forest

Riverdale

Richton Park

South Holland

Contributing

Investors

BDI

CN Railroad

Centerpoint - Governors State

CenterPoint

Properties

Comcast

Chicago Building

Trade Council

Crete

Gallagher Asphalt

Homewood

Horton

Illinois Trucking

Association

Land Resource

Management Group

Land Vision Inc.

Oak Forest

Robinson Engineering

Sandrick Law Firm

Stevenson Crane

Tinley Park

Union Pacific Railroad

Weaver Boos

Wildman Harrold

Associate

Investors

Baxter Woodman

CB Richard Ellis

Chicago Jobs Council

Enginex Environmental Engineering

Environmental Protection Industries

Village of Flossmoor

Harvey Alderman Chuck Giviens

Hitchcock Design Group

JF New and Associates

JJR. LLC

Musada, Funai, Eifert &

Mitchell, Ltd.
Olympia Fields
Paine/Wetzel Associates

Prairie State College
Prime/CCP Development Partners LLC

South Chicago Heights

Economic Development Partners

Center for Neighborhood Technology

Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning

Chicago Southland Convention and Visitors Bureau

Chicago Southland Mayors and Managers

Chicago Southland Chamber of Commerce

Cook County, Delta Institute

GovernorsStateUniversity

Metropolitan Planning Council

Grantors:

CookCounty

Illinois Department of Transportation

US Environmental Protection Agency

Regional Transportation Authority

To Become an Investor and show your support for the growth and development of our region, click here.

Please join us at the Chicago Southland Economic Development Corporation Quarterly Forum and discover opportunities for you and our region.

Quarterly Forum, January 28

Hosted by South Suburban College and The Village of Riverdale

8:30 a.m. - 10:30

South Suburban College

15800 South State, South Holland

Preliminary Agenda

· Economic Development Opportunities in Riverdale

· South Suburban College Rebound Program and Economic Development

· The South Suburban Transit Region

· The South Suburban Bike and Walk the Natural Areas of the South

How much money is your business wasting on utilities?

Free Energy Efficiency Program Workshop

Wednesday, January 19, 8:30 am (Breakfast served)

Moraine Valley College

M Building, Moraine Room 1

9000 W. College Pkwy

Palos Hills, 60465

The Delta Institute is offering free energy efficiency assistance that will help 150 businesses in Cook County find and act on real opportunities to save on operations and maintenance. The Delta Institute, a regional leader in energy efficiency and green building technology is administering Cook County's Energy Efficiency Community Block Grant by providing federally funded energy assessments, retro-commissioning, as well as funding and incentive opportunities to help your business save money.

Come learn how to apply!

RSVP to Victor Couto, 312-554-0900 ext. 19 orvcouto@delta-institute.org

To learn more visit www.delta-institute.org/cookefficiency

Partners: Moraine Valley College, Workforce Development & Community Services Center for Sustainability, Blue Island Chamber, Alsip Chamber & Industrial Association, Bedford Clearing and Industrial Association

You Can Help Promote and Grow our Region

The Green Transit, Intermodal, Manufacturing Environment (TIME) Zone

LogisticsParkCalumet

Transit Oriented Development Corridor

Calumet Renewable Auto, Rail, Manufacturing Center

Chicago Southland Vision 2020

Southeast Service Metra Line

Metra Extension to Peotone

South Suburban Airport

Illiana Expressway

I-57/I-294 Intersection

Calumet Sag Bike Trail;

intermodal developments in Crete, Harvey and Dolton.

Click here for more information and to make your investment in support of the growth of our region.

Visit the following sites to learn more about the many opportunties and initiatives of the Chicago Southland Economic Development Corporation.

www.chicagosouthlandedc.org

www.chicagosouthlandsbdc.org

Or, contact Reggie Greenwood at 708-922-4671 · reggie.greenwood@ssmma.org

Newsletter published by ZPR & Consulting. Submit your feedback or news tolisa@zprconsulting.com

Economist on Boomers

2011-01-05T13:02:00.001-06:00

Hi Craig,

Interesting article from the Economist on how the “Boomers” are screwing things up again.

Bill

http://www.economist.com/node/17800237?story_id=17800237&fsrc=scn/tw/te/rss/pe

Our Historic Home For Sale

2010-12-31T05:11:00.001-06:00

We Picked a Great Time to Sell Our Home

More info at:

http://historichighstreet.blogspot.com/

Home Values Drop

2010-12-31T04:42:00.004-06:00

Home values in America continue to drop according to Zillow.com.

Zillow estimates home values from October 2009 to October 2010.

But values vary widely in different metro areas.

Nation declined by 5%, average value 178,100

Chicago declined by 8%, average value 200,600

Tampa Bay declined by 9.2%, average value 114,500

San Diego increased by 2.3%, average value 363,800

http://www.zillow.com/local-info?scid=emo-headerlocal-Home_Report_NOAD_V2

http://www.zillow.com/

The American Economy

2010-12-29T20:13:00.001-06:00

Proceed with caution

America’s economy looks set for a good year. But investors should beware the treacherous path beyond 2011

The American economy

Dec 29th 2010

THE American stock market enters 2011 in a jolly mood. In the past four months it has leapt by 20%, to heights last enjoyed when Lehman Brothers was a going concern. Investors are likely to cheer a second consecutive year of double-digit returns.

This partly reflects growth elsewhere: American companies make a third of their profits outside the United States. But the most recent spurt has been driven by a sharp change in the outlook at home. At the end of the summer Wall Street worried that growth was grinding to a halt.

Read the rest of the article on the Economist.

Job Loss

2010-12-27T13:57:00.000-06:00

Jobs Jump Off a Cliff in the Nation’s Major Metro Areas

Howard Wial

With the November unemployment rate up to 9.8 percent (up from 9.6 percent in October) and job growth down to only 39,000 (down from October’s 172,000), thenational jobs picture is dismal, dashing hopes that a labor market recovery is imminent. The picture in the nation’s 100 largest metropolitan areas as of the third quarter of this year (ending in September) is equally bleak, as the latest BrookingsMetroMonitor shows.

Read the rest of the story at:

http://www.tnr.com/blog/the-avenue/80276/jobs-jump-cliff-in-the-nation%E2%80%99s-major-metro-areas

CityPlanningNews.com

2010-12-27T13:55:00.003-06:00

IEDC

2010-12-20T21:46:00.001-06:00

The International Economic Development Council (IEDC) is an excellent resource for economic development.

Click on the link below for information about the IEDC.

http://www.iedconline.org/

Municipal Bankruptcies

2010-12-16T12:40:00.000-06:00

We have had very few municipal bankruptcies despite the severity of the recession. Read about it on the link below from ICMA

http://icma.org/en/icma/newsroom/highlights/Article/100844/CBO_Report_Finds_Few_Municipal_Bankruptcies_Despite_Fiscal_Pressures

http://icma.org

The Feds Are Printing a Lot of Money = Inflation?

2010-12-16T09:36:00.000-06:00

The Federal Reserve is printing 100 billion new dollars each month. Will this rapidly increase inflation?

Read an understandable analysis on the link below.

http://hepburncapital.com/newsletter/37176-why-the-dollar-bears-pullout12-14-10are-wrong.html

http://hepburncapital.com/

Happy Holidays

2010-12-15T08:30:00.000-06:00

Happy Holidays

Merry XMAS

Happy New Year

http://xmashullinger.blogspot.com/

New Urbanism

2010-12-12T10:58:00.002-06:00

Interesting site on New Urbanism.

http://www.newurbanism.org/

The Congress for New Urbanism Site.

www.cnu.org

Wikapedia Defines Economic Development

2010-12-12T10:47:00.001-06:00

Wikapedia Defines Economic Development.

I think the definition is accurate.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_development

Why Big Cities Matter

2010-12-09T13:49:00.000-06:00

Why Big Cities matter. Interesting article in the City Journal.

http://www.city-journal.org/2010/20_4_big-cities.html

http://www.city-journal.org/

Roads Made of Sand and Bacteria?

2010-12-04T07:34:00.001-06:00

Two designers propose to replace asphalt with stone.

Read the story on the link below:

http://www.next100.com/2010/11/sandstone-highway.php

2010-12-03T06:19:00.004-06:00

The US is now the world leader in wind generated electric power, according to Wikapedia. We get about 2% of our electricity from wind now. They project that wind will generate 20% of our electricity by 2030.

This substantial increase is the result of a public private partnership of industry and government. Read the rest of the article at:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_power_in_the_United_States

Another good article about energy in Wikapedia below:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_in_the_United_States

My Birthday

2010-12-02T04:18:00.009-06:00

Thank you all for your kind notes on my birthday Dec 1.

Notes from my parents on my 63rd birthday below. This of course has nothing to do with economic development and city planning, but I included it because my Dad's comments were pretty funny. The photo is of me in Marine Corps bootcamp, which well illustrates my forehead at 19 years of age. It also has nothing to do with economic development, but is also humorous.

____________

Dec 1, 2010 Clif Hullinger wrote:

Happy 63rd birthday, Craig

The years do go by! I vividly remember the first one. You had made a long slow entrance into this existence and your forehead had been pushed back till it seemed like it was even with your eyebrows and your head pointed up and back. I would have refused delivery if it had been an option and I went back to the barracks one sick puppy. What a relief when Wayne Gray made a comment about head shapes on newborns. The next day I saw a decided improvement and after 2 or 3 days, I decided it was good enough to keep!!

Dad Here
_____

Here I am, your mother, and I don't remember anything like that! Probably because I knew anything born to Clif and I would be absolutely perfect. How many years have gone by since that fateful December day? We thought it was a shame that your birthday had to be so close to Christmas, because it might affect how many C gifts you would receive. (Such selfish thoughts.) Then Scott came along and he was born even closer to Christmas (Dec. 12)

Anyhow you have always made us proud. Keep on.

Louise
____
My bootcamp photo illustrates my forehead at 19, which may have been close to my appearance at birth. My current look is again approaching that look. What comes around goes around. Beginning, middle, end.

Born Again.

Nice Videos - Guerilla Theater Across The World

2010-12-01T20:44:00.004-06:00

Guerilla Theater Across The World.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UE3CNu_rtY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQ3d3KigPQM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVJVRywgmYM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwzN4633mpI

Leadership Article from the International City Managers Association

2010-11-30T08:25:00.005-06:00

Interesting Article from ICMA about leadership from the middle of the organization.

"Develop your leadership capacity to benefit you and
your organization. Executive managers at the top of the
organization are too overwhelmed to do all the leading.
The big challenges of the day (e.g., redesigning services
in the face of our financial crisis, better using technology
to serve and communicate with community, engaging
citizens and building trust, finding and implementing
environmental solutions) require leadership at all levels
of the organization."

Read the Article at:

http://icma.org/en/Article/100812/Top_Ten_Strategies_for_Leading_from_the_Middle?pub=104&issue=

http://icma.org/en/icma/home

Sustainabie Development

2010-11-28T18:44:00.000-06:00

Two New books about sustainable approaches to architecture.

http://www.planetizen.com/node/47044

US Budget Cuts

2010-11-21T21:58:00.000-06:00

Interesting Article and interactive survey in the New York Times. You get to figure out how to close the future US Budget gap with your recommended mix of tax increases and/or benefit cuts.

I closed the gap with 23% tax increases and 77% benefit cuts. See how you come out.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/11/13/weekinreview/deficits-graphic.html?emc=eta1

Unemployment Metro Nort Port, Sarasota, and Bradenton

2010-11-16T10:26:00.003-06:00

The BLS reported that the unemployment rate for North Port fell 0.0 percentage points in September 2010 to 12.6%. For the same month, the metro unemployment rate was 0.7 percentage points higher than the Florida rate. The unemployment rate in North Port peaked in March 2010 at 12.3% and is now 0.4 percentage points lower. From a post peak low of 11.4% in June 2010, the unemployment rate has now grown by 0.5 percentage points.

Unemployment Rate September 2010 Month/Month Year/Year

National 9.6% 0.0 -0.2
Florida 11.9% +0.1 +0.7
North Port 12.6% 0.0 +0.2

Note: Metro level data is not seasonally adjusted.1 All comparisons are made with September 2010 data as October metro level unemployment data has not yet been released.

Are People Really Fleeing Shrinking Cities?

2010-11-15T20:56:00.000-06:00

Interesting Article in the Urbanophile about the shrinking of Midwest Cities.

http://www.urbanophile.com/2010/11/14/are-people-really-fleeing-shrinking-cities/

http://www.urbanophile.com/

Interesting Article in Planetcitizen About Sustainable Bulding Materials

2010-11-15T20:26:00.000-06:00

Scientists in Spain and Scotland found that simply adding wool and a natural polymer found in seaweed to the clay of a brick makes it 37% stronger, and more resistant to the cold wet climate often found in Britain.

Another innovation comes from the world of concrete production, which accounts for a staggering 7-10% of global carbon dioxide emissions. When producing sustainable concrete crushed glass can be added, as can wood chips or slag - a byproduct of steel manufacturing. Whilst these changes aren’t radically transforming concrete, by simply using a material that would have otherwise gone to waste, the CO2 emissions associated with concrete are reduced.

Full Story: Five Sustainable Building Materials That Could Transform Construction

Urbanophile

2010-11-13T11:33:00.001-06:00

Urbanization, one of humankind’s most successful and ambitious programs, is the triumph of the unnatural over the natural, the grid over the organic… Underway on a scale never before witnessed, one side effect of urbanization is the liberation of vast depopulated territories for the efficient production of “nature”.

Bruce Mau

Great Quote from

http://www.urbanophile.com/

One of my favorite blogs about urban development.

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Are People Really Fleeing Shrinking Cities?

Interesting Article in Planetcitizen About Sustainable Bulding Materials

Urbanophile