In preparing presentations about our placemaking recommendations what has struck me is that the key message can be summed up in three words: talent attracts capital. Where talent means primarily those with a four-year degree or more. What the most…
In a recent post we made the case for why gentrification is a good. Something that all Michigan cities should want more of. In this post I want to explore what happens to neighborhoods without gentrification. I finished the previous…
For years I have said that the city of Detroit needs more gentrification and congestion. As most of you would expect, the push-back is immediate and intense. Most folks think of the negative consequences of both and instinctively recoil at…
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…