We finish our new report, “A path to good-paying careers for all Michiganders: Creating places across Michigan where people want to live and work,” and this blog series, with a deep dive into transportation. Transportation is at the epicenter of…
As the tragedy of Flint reminded us all, up to date infrastructure is an essential ingredient to livable communities. Transportation, water, energy and digital communications systems need to be world class for Michigan communities to compete for talent. Our new…
Just as talent––the asset that matters most to future economic growth––comes in all human varieties, talented people are looking for a wide variety of quality of place features in where they want to live and work. Probably most importantly, some…
The state must do its part to ensure that no talented workers are turned off and turned away by Michigan’s communities. That means a legal framework that prohibits all forms of discrimination, and access to the resources necessary for social…
Over two decades of research has taught us one fundamental lesson: Talent = economic growth. The key to retaining and attracting talent is creating places where people want to live, work and play. Then-New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg got…
As we all now know Amazon picked New York City and the northern Virginia inner ring suburbs of Washington D.C. for their HQ2. Both characterized by high concentrations of those with four-year degrees or more and extensive transit systems. As we…
If there is one issue that both Michigan candidates for governor seem to agree on it is that fixing the roads is a top priority. Good news in a state that for a decade or more let its 20th Century…
The New York Times recently wrote about Ford's purchase of the long-abandoned Detroit train station. The article's subtitle is what matters: By renovating a symbol of the city’s decline, the company hopes to create a magnet for the talent needed to…
When Bart Carrigan moved from East Lansing to Minneapolis to manage his Michigan-based employer’s newly opened restaurant, he was struck by the city’s many amenities. “I love the environment, and there are a ton of outdoor activities all year round,”…
Most, if not all, major metropolitan areas have business organizations that promote the economic well being of their regions. But the Itasca Project serving Minnesota’s Twin Cities is different from just about any such organization in the country. This group…