The Growth Outside Big Cities

Joel Kotkin reports:

A recent article in the The New York Times described North Dakota as “not far from forsaken.” The image conveyed by the article was of a state in “irresistible decline”—of dying towns and aging populations, a place to visit before it turned to dust. This is how the media all too often portrays the Heartland, and it is a view shared by many academics and policymakers. But the picture is out of date and out of focus.

Over the past two years, North Dakota has in fact gained population, while Massachusetts, which few would describe as “forsaken,” was the only state to lose people. More to the point, although some parts of the Great Plains are experiencing a decline in population, other parts are seeing an increase in jobs, population, and income—in some cases exhibiting higher growth rates than urban coastal America. Fargo, North Dakota, for example, grew by over 20 percent between 1990 and 2000.

Increasingly, skilled individuals and businesses are recognizing that the Heartland possesses many underutilized assets. These include low housing costs, a relatively good business climate, quality schools, a reasonably educated and productive workforce, and available land and other resources for expansion.

Here's a PDF report.