Published: Sunday, June 3, 2007
Area leaders ready plans to make economic changes
Emboldened by a national report on Rust Belt cities, area leaders ready a plan to make change now.
By DON SHILLING
Jim Converse hopes a landmark national study on industrial cities can do a lot more for this area than sit on a shelf and collect dust.
He thinks the study can lead to real-world projects, perhaps a walkway along the Mahoning River in Youngstown or a new highway interchange at Interstate 680 and Shirley Road to help trucks reach old industrial land along the river.
He'd like to see more of a commitment to broader issues as well, such as redeveloping neighborhoods and bringing industry into abandoned industrial sites.
The study of 302 cities nationwide is called "Restoring Prosperity" and was released recently by the Brookings Institution, a Washington, D.C., research group.
Brookings asked Greater Ohio, a land use planning organization, to lead the follow-up in the state.
The study found that 65 U.S. cities aren't participating in a renewal that most cities are enjoying. Eleven of those cities are in Ohio, including Youngstown and Warren.
"We want to outline a new direction, not just whine about being left out," said Converse, director of the Greater Ohio's Mahoning Valley chapter and a longtime activist in housing and land-use issues in Youngstown.
It starts Wednesday with a public meeting from 1 to 3:30 p.m. at the Holiday Inn MetroPlex.
Converse has invited 1,800 area business, community and government leaders to learn about the study, and he's hoping more than 300 will attend.
What he wants to do
He is forming five groups that will work on steps the Brookings report recommends for revitalizing industrial cities:
Fix the basics. Find ways to improve schools, reduce crime and create a good environment for families and businesses.
Build on economic strengths. States should help cities invest in downtowns and focus on strengths, such as culture, entertainment and advanced manufacturing.
Transform the physical landscape. States must upgrade crumbling infrastructure and support major projects, such as waterfront redevelopment.
Grow the middle class. States should upgrade vocational training and enact programs that help low-income residents build wealth and assets.
Create neighborhoods of choice. Policies are needed that help create strong, healthy neighborhoods.
More local meetings will be scheduled this fall, and the work could go on for years, Converse said. For more information, call Converse at (330) 518-6971.
Mayor's support
Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams said he intends to promote the study's conclusions for a long time.
The report supports his contention that regional cooperation and new state policies are needed to revitalize cities that have been left behind as new development has headed to the suburbs and rural areas.
Past policies have gone too far in encouraging infrastructure investments in outlying areas when cities have roads and sewers already in place, Williams said.
He said the Brookings study comes at the right time because Ohioans elected a new governor who campaigned on providing more help for urban areas. Plus, the city has been working on its own Youngstown 2010 plan.
"The stars are aligned," he said. "If we can't accomplish something now, then we don't have the political will to do it."
Positive tone
The report has plenty of gloomy statistics about how the 65 cities are lagging in job and income growth and the like, but it sounds a positive tone.
"The time is ripe for revitalization of these cities," said Jennifer Vey, Brookings senior research associate.
More people are looking to live in urban communities, including people who are delaying marriage and older couples whose children have left home, she said. People have renewed interest in cultural institutions, and universities and medical facilities are becoming more important, she said.
The 65 lagging cities can catch up with this trend with policies that are designed to help cities with an industrial heritage, she said.
Gov. Ted Strickland's staff is supporting the report, and Marvin Hayes, state director of urban and infrastructure development, will speak at the Wednesday event in Liberty.
Despite the call for state policies, it's clear that local officials have a responsibility, too, said Reid Dulberger, executive vice president of the Regional Chamber.
The region needs to agree on an agenda that it wants to accomplish and then use the state as a resource, he said.
The region needs to build on its strengths of having a manufacturing base, a university and central location, he said.
"I don't think it's too late for us," he said.
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