Why Young Professionals --- and the Communities that Want Them --- Should Care About Governance Presentation to the iForum on “Connecticut’s Young Professionals: Can Communities Develop to Keep and Attract Them?” Partnership for Strong Communities Hartford, Connecticut April 13, 2012 Kathryn A. (Kate) Foster, Ph.D. Visiting Fellow, Brookings Institution Metropolitan Policy Program Senior Fellow, University at Buffalo Regional Institute
Presentation I. A Personal Prelude II. What Young Professionals Seek in a Community III. How Governance Connects IV. Taking it to Connecticut V. Now What?
A Personal Prelude Conetikit
A Personal Prelude Kate’s Habitations, 6 base moves, 1 temporary move Age 20-34 Kate’s Habitations, 0 base moves, 2 temporary moves Age 35-present
A Personal Prelude Young adults (ages 20-34) move a lot. Reasons vary across these years. Age 20-24: migrate for college Age 25-29: migrate for career Age 30-34: migrate to settle
A Personal Prelude Young adults (20-34) are twice as likely to move as those who are at least 35 years old. Interstate Migration Rate by Age, United States, 2000-01 and 2008-09
A Personal Prelude
A Personal Prelude Footloose, college-educated adults are most mobile. Interstate Migration Rates by Demographic/Economic Attributes, 2000-2009 More Than College Grad and College Grad
A Personal Prelude Footloose, college-educated adults are most mobile. Interstate Migration Rates by Demographic/Economic Attributes, 2000-2009 Never Married and Divorced or Separated
Point 1: Although less mobile than in the recent past, the most mobile cohort in the U.S. is educated, single, twenty-somethings. Q. Are you prepared for thirty- somethings who are ready to settle?
What Young Professionals Seek in a Community 1. Job/Economic Opportunity 2. Affordable/Decent/Safe Housing 3. Transportation Choice/Mobility Most relevant after 4. Coolness/Aesthetics satisfying #1, #2 and #3
What Young Professionals Seek in a Community Indeed, Young adults follow economic opportunity. Net Domestic Migration (avg. annual) by Metro Area for Persons Aged 25-34 Pre-Recession: • Riverside, Phoenix, and Atlanta had plentiful jobs and relatively affordable housing • Los Angeles, NYC, Miami and Chicago did not
What Young Professionals Seek in a Community Indeed, Young adults follow economic opportunity. Net Domestic Migration (avg. annual) by Metro Area for Persons Aged 25-34 Recession: • Mortgage meltdown and unemployment disfavor former magnets • Top Gainers did relatively well economically and offer “strong youth cachet”
What Young Professionals Seek in a Community 1. Job/Economic Opportunity 2. Affordable/Decent/Safe Housing 3. Transportation Choice/Mobility Operative after satisfying 4. Coolness/Aesthetics #1, #2 and #3
Point 2: Jobs matter most. Support a robust regional economy and entrepreneurial impulses. Q. How helpful are you to those with a new idea and willingness to work (and how good are your public schools)?
What Young Professionals Seek in a Community Notably not on the list…. 5. Good Governance (national, state, regional, local) And yet, might governance matter? If so, how?
How Governance Connects Governance: how groups organize and act to do something Establish a vision, set priorities Understand and address issues Provide goods and services Resolve conflicts, thwart crises Seize opportunities Plan for the long haul
How Governance Connects Good Governance: performing governance sufficiently well to achieve group goals: efficiency fairness, equal opportunity accountability citizen participation economic development fiscal sustainability environmental sustainability
Sounds pretty simple, right?
How Governance Connects At least four challenges complicate governance. 1. Multiple, overlapping issue scales 2. No single entity has authority to address issue Issue 3. Many autonomous players with varied interests and powers accountability 4. Lack of consensus on priorities
Oh, and there’s a fifth challenge.
How Governance Connects How can we be “different, together”? Dividing Lines… • race • ethnicity • religion • age • gender • income • political ideology • geography • lifestyle
How Governance Connects Time for a Joke. How many local governments does it take to change a light bulb? Region Classification
How Governance Connects Change is motivated by push and pull factors. Push: Crisis Region Classification
How Governance Connects Change is motivated by push and pull factors. Pull: Opportunity Push: Crisis Region Classification
How Governance Connects There is a perfect storm for Big Change in Local Governance. Economic: national recession; Wall Street to Main Street implications Demographic: older, poorer populations, with newcomers aplenty Fiscal: structural deficits, tsunami of legacy costs; declining revenues, increasing needs Political: anti-government, anti-tax, anti-spending sentiment
How Governance Connects Promotes political Small is participation Beautiful Promotes accountability Promotes cost-braking Vs. competition Promotes equity Bigger Promotes economic & is environmental coordination Better Promotes economies of scale
How Governance Connects “Boundary Crossing” offers a working solution. Public Private Sectors Issues Nonprofit/ Academic Civic N’borhood Town/City County Scales Metro Region Global
Point 3: Achieving good governance is hard. Q. At what scale do key issues operate? How readily do you cross boundaries of scale, issue and sector?
Taking it to Connecticut Let’s combine young adults and governance and take it to Connecticut. A New American Dream for Connecticutians in their 20s and 30s 1. Affordable, decent, convenient, neighborly housing 2. Neighborhoods with cohesion and sense of identity 3. Quality of life basics, well done 4. Aesthetics -- attractive and interesting 5. Non-auto transportation options 6. City/town-centered employment; mixed live/work spaces 7. Ways to be involved and make a difference
Taking it to Connecticut That seventh point deserves emphasis. A New American Dream for Connecticutians in their 20s and 30s 1. Affordable, decent, convenient, neighborly housing 2. Neighborhoods with cohesion and sense of identity 3. Quality of life basics, well done 4. Aesthetics -- attractive and interesting 5. Non-auto transportation options 6. City/town-centered employment; mixed live/work spaces 7. Ways to be involved and make a difference
Taking it to Connecticut If we held up a mirror to the state, what would we see? Great location… …but not fully capitalizing on it Nation’s third -highest drop in 25-34 cohort, 1990-2010 Highest per capita income in nation High tax rates, especially property taxes High wealth and race/ethnicity disparities Highly competitive local government environment Modest regional cooperation and identity Widely varied city fortunes Plenty of lovely housing… …but not so plenty affordable rentals Towns control planning authority; some lack professional capacity Activist governor and ready-to-contribute young professionals
Taking it to Connecticut Now let’s enrich the picture with a governance assessment. 169 towns, some including or merged with cities (21) or boroughs (9) Whole state incorporated by 1779 ; last town “taking” 1921 (West Haven) Towns and town- cities have broad home rule powers
Taking it to Connecticut Counties
A Connecticut Story 14 state- designated regions, dating to 1948 Member municipalities constitute voluntary regional planning organization Advisory authority for Planning Regions inter-governmental affairs, incl. transportation & regional growth
Taking it to Connecticut Tri-branch govt. delegates considerable powers to municipalities Agencies can use mandates, incentives, other tools to attract growth, sustain quality of life State plan in place (and State under revision) for conservation and development
Taking it to Connecticut Initial Draft of the 2013-2018 Conservation and Development Policies Plan for Connecticut 1. Redevelop Regional Centers 2. Expand Housing Opportunities 3. Concentrate Development around Transportation Nodes 4. Conserve and Restore Natural and Cultural Environment 5. Protect and Ensure Public Health and Safety 6. Promote Integrated Planning Across Govt. Levels http://www.ct.gov/opm/lib/opm/igp/cdplan/ 2013/2013-2018_initial_draft.pdf
Taking it to Connecticut Bi- and Tri-State Regions
Taking it to Connecticut Non-Public Entities Among the many shaping Connecticut communities: Partnership for Strong Communities Conn. Main Street Center Conn. Business Industry Association Regional Business Councils Conn. United Ways 1000 Friends of Conn. Conn. Chapter of the Amer. Planning Assoc. Conn. Chapter of the Amer. Inst. of Architects Conn. Conference of Municipalities Conn. Council of Small Towns Conn. Economic Development Association Conn. Economic Resource Center Conn. Housing Coalition Conn. Preservation Action Conn. Trust for Historic Preservation Local Initiatives Support Corporation
Recommend
More recommend
