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Publishing schedule for the next ten days
Thursday, September 23, 2004 Over the next ten days, I will be traveling in China. As some of you know, I have been going to China regularly since the early 1990's to understand how this economy is evolving and its impact on the U.S. I sit on the board of a U.S.-China joint venture that produces bottled water for the China market. This position gives me a good vantage point to understand the underlying dynamics of the Chinese economy: facts beyond the headlines. My access to the Internet will be spotty, so my posts to EDPro Weblog will be irregular. In addition, I will not be publishing EDPro Newsnext Monday. posted by Ed | Austin's wireless plans Verizon has announced that Austin will be the first all-wireless city in Texas. The challenge: Getting people to pay for the service. The target market: mobile professionals. Read more. If you are interested in keeping up with municipal wireless, check out this site posted by Ed | RTP and medical devices Some EDPros in the Research Triangle are looking at medical devices as one of the next technology platforms on which to build. Read more. posted by Ed | Mississippi governor convenes a big "'kitchen cabinet" Mississippi's Governor Barbour has launched Momentum Mississippi, an initiative to enlist business and education leaders from across the state to promote economic development. Read more. In his remarks, he focused squarely on the challenge that we all face: education. Texas, California, South Carolina, Arkansas, Louisiana, West Virginia and Rhode Island all have lower levels of high school graduates in their adult populations. Download a report on educational attainment. Go. And few states can brag about their post secondary systems. See how your state ranks. Go. posted by Ed | Wichita sets an incentives budget Witchita and Sedgewick County are making the sensible step of developing a budget for their economic development incentives. By establishing a clear budget, the city and county will begin to discriminate among different types of projects and set some sensible priorities. Read more. posted by Ed | Boondoggle check-in: Grassley's rainforest Some of you will recall that Senator Grassley from Iowa managed to put $50 million into an appropriations bill to build a rainforest in Iowa. All in the name of economic development. Read more. This was happening as the Congress cut about the same amount from the budget of the manufacturing extention program that helps small and mid-sized manufacturers. A law professor in Iowa has launched a blog to keep track of this project and the rather implausible assumptions that underly it. Read more. posted by Ed | Outsourcing trends Wednesday, September 22, 2004 Here's an interesting article that explores how outsourcing shifts as technologies mature. At the same time, companies are becoming more sophisticated in the business models they are building to incorporate offshore platforms. We read about India and China a lot, but Russia, Poland, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand and others are all in the hunt. Business process outsourcing has become a key element in their economic development strategies. Read more. posted by Ed | New angel network forms in North Carolina There's no official count, but my guess is that angel investing is gaining new momentum this year. Here's another example from North Carolina. Moore County, with a population of about 75,000, has launched a new network. Partners in Progress is coordinating the initiative. You can visit the new web site, Angels for Moore. The challenge of angel investing groups, especially in smaller locations, is managing investor expectations. If you want to learn more about angel investing, visit the Angel Investor News. posted by Ed | North Carolina's Issue 1 Along with Arkansas, North Carolina has an important economic development iniaitive on the ballot this November. Amendment One would change the state's constitution to allow local governments to pass bonds without voter approval that could be used to pay for infrastructure improvements. Read some background. Go. posted by Ed | Two books colliding Some years ago, author Joel Garreeau popularized the concept of Edge Cities with his book by that name. The term describes places on the edge of major metropolitan areas. Now, there's even a conference of Edge Cities so that civic leaders can explore strategy together to keep "the Creative Class", Richard Florida's formula for prosperity. (Cynics can see it the new book title by Garreau and Florida: Creative Edge Cities, Finding Bohemia in the Parking Lot.) Learn more. posted by Ed | e-commerce certifications in Minnesota Minnesota has an interesting initiative to certify communities as being ready for e-commerce. State certification programs -- like certified industrial parks, for example -- have the good effect of focusing a community's leadership on specific goals. Read more about how one community has met the test. Go. You can learn more about e-commerce readiness in Minnesota from this page. Download their community e-commerce guide. Go. posted by Ed | Nebraska measures its tax climate The Nebraska Chamber of Commerce and Industry has released a report on the states tax climate and incentives. The conclusion: Nebraska has fallen behind. Read more. posted by Ed | Call center conference is cancelled Monday, September 20, 2004 The call center conference scheduled for this week in Mississippi has been cancelled. Hurrican Ivan has taken his toll. Read more about the conference. If you have any questions you can call Dr. David Butler at the University of Southern Mississippi 601-266-4735. posted by Ed | Economy Watch Saturday, September 18, 2004 Here's the latest on the economy. Vital Signs for the Week of Sept. 20 UN Report Says World Economic Growth Threatened by US Deficit Edwards to Cheney: Selling on eBay doesn't solve economic woes Unprecedented Job Losses In Some IT Segments Retail Sales Drop, Stocks Tread Water America's diversity seen as a big plus in a global economy US consumer confidence shows dip posted by Ed | Resource: Knowledge clusters conference presentations Lee Munnich at The Humphrey Institute at the University of Minnesota organized an important conference on knowledge clusters last week. The participants made presentations that distilled our learning about how knowledge clusters form and develop. The presentations are now available on line. Learn more. posted by Ed | Other states support Ohio's appeal of tax ruling Earlier this month, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati threw out Ohio's use of tax credits for economic development. The ruling casts doubt on the future of similar programs in Kentucky, Michigan, and Tennessee, all part of the same judicial district. Ohio has appealed the decision to the full court, and the other states are supporting the appeal. Learn more. posted by Ed | Getting an associate degree in bioscience Indianapolis and Indiana are teaming to provide more opportunities for high school graduates to earn associate degrees in the biosciences. The state program focuses on employees of bioscience companies. Employees at these companies are eligible for full tuition reimbursement to earn associate degrees. In a related initiative, called Biotech Bound, young adults who are not currently employed at a bioscience company can qualify for a free ride to get an associate degree. The first program will cover 134 employees. The second will start with ten this year and twenty next year. Read more. These are the type of initiatives we need to expand the pool of skilled workers. We are not doing enough to move high school graduates on to post secondary education. We need new initiatives, like these, to bridge the gap. posted by Ed | More pressure on textiles and apparel Textile and apparel factories in the U.S. have been under enormous competitive pressure for years. Matters are about to get even more difficult for U.S. factories. On December 31, U.S. trade quotas on fabric, yarn, clothes and other products will be removed. If you have any of these plants in your area, prepare now for what is coming. Read more. posted by Ed | The education/economic development connection EDPros in Southwest Michigan see the growing importance of brainpower as a key to economic prosperity. This theme came through their talks at a quarterly meeting held last week. As one participant noted: "You have to have a community that values education, and an educational system has to deliver a quality product. That's the way a community gets ahead." Learn more. posted by Ed | Resource: Important report on higher education In one of the most important economic development reports of the year, The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education has issued Measuring Up 2004, an assessment of where each state stands on post-secondary education. The National Center is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization. It is not affiliated with any government agency, political party, or college or university. Why is this report so important? Because in the global economy today, competitiveness begins with brainpower. Measuring Up 2004, consists of the national report card for higher education and fifty state report cards. The report provides the public and policymakers with information to improve postsecondary education in each state. Nationally, we have made some improvement in primary and secondary education, but our progress at postsecondary levels is standing still. Read more Detailed state report cards are available here. posted by Ed | The global competition for colleges and universities We often don't realize that our colleges and universities are competing globally. There's growing evidence that colleges and universities outside the U.S. are gaining in productivity and prestige. They are producing more top graduates. At the same time, the National Science Foundation report that between 1990 and 2001 the number of engineering and science bachelor degrees earned in the United States declined or stagnated in every category except psychology and biology. This article from Maryland reviews the issue. Read more. posted by Ed | Portland forums build relationships For real estate developers and manufacturers, Portland, OR is not the easiest place in which to do business. These firms are taking the smart step is hosting forums for mayoral candidates. It's a good tactic to follow. According to one of the sponsors, "We hope that this dialogue starts a meaningful relationship between the manufacturing segment and the new leaders of our community." Read more. posted by Ed | Focusing on the impact of the arts Friday, September 17, 2004 Arts are increasingly becoming an important agenda item for economic development. Montgomery County, MD has an active and vibrant arts community that is gaining confidence with its expanding economic development role. Read more. In Frederick, MD, the board of county commissioners is considering a tax incentive designed to encourage investments in a downtown arts and entertainment district. Read more. An impact survey is underway in Missoula, MT to gauge the impact of the arts. Read more. If you are engaged with your local arts community, you might point them to the Arts & Economic Prosperity Calculator, assembled by Americans for the Arts. posted by Ed | Small town opportunities Here's a couple of good articles on the opportunities for development in smaller towns. Small towns have big opportunities Expert offers tips on rural development posted by Ed | Philadelphia convenes economic development summit Philadelphia's mayor is leading a summit to define a new economic development blueprint for the city. According to the mayor, "We want a blueprint for economic development that we all can buy into." Read more. Visit the project web site. Go. posted by Ed | Connecting students and companies in Michigan biotech Michigan's biotech cluster is working to keep more college students in the state. They are opening student chapters to MichBio across the state. Read more. posted by Ed | USDA provides funds to strengthen coops In rural areas, the Department of Agriculture can play an important role in economic development. In the case of Pennsylvania, USDA is providing funds to strengthen local coops. Read more. Learn more about USDA initiatives. posted by Ed | The emergence of wind power Wednesday, September 15, 2004 In some states, wind power offers a new source of energy. In Europe, wind power is an established industry. In the U.S., however, we have been slow to see the opportunity. Some states will move more quickly with direct incentives to wind power, much like Texas has done. Read more. Learn more about wind power from the American Wind Energy Association. posted by Ed | Accountability for incentives In New York State, the Empire Zone program is under fire, because of lax accountability. Public officials are not following up with companies to see if they have held up their end of the bargain. In Taunton, MA, you see a different story. The city council is closely watching its tax increment financing program. The council looks like it will suspend benefits for some companies and permanently remove one firm from the program. Read more. posted by Ed | Report on high tech job losses A new study highlights the loss of high tech jobs in the U.S. Read more. Download a copy of the report. Go posted by Ed | Wichita selects focus areas for development Tuesday, September 14, 2004 Wichita has come a long way. Eighteen months ago, the region was struggling to get its economic development act together. Now, it appears, the pieces are coming together. This week the Greater Wichita Economic Development Coalition outlined its focus areas for development. They include aviation, automotive, machinery and equipment, composites and other advanced materials, food processing, and back-office services. Read more. Read some additional background. Go. posted by Ed | New regional group in upstate New York A new regional group is launching in upstate New York. The Regional Development Alliance covers 12 counties in the central upstate region. Read more. The strategies for the new group are outlined in The Essential New York Initiative. You can download the report from this page. By coincidence, the Brookings Institution released a report on the income gap in upstate New York this week. It is one of a series of reports that Brookings has been conducing in the upstate region. Read more. You can download the Brookings report from this page. posted by Ed | Universities in the Southeast coordinate meeting Research universities in the Southeast are combining with the Research Triangle Institute to hold a two day meeting in October. This meeting highlights the emerging role of research universities in economic development in the Southeast. Learn more. posted by Ed | Economy Watch Sunday, September 12, 2004 Here's the best articles on the economy I read from last week. Consumer Confidence Shows Tiny Dip In August Vital Signs for the Week of Sept 13 Health Care Cost Increases Might Have Negative Effect on US Economy, Labor Department Says Cheney: US Econ Data Overlooks Money From eBay Trading US inflation benign, economy on track-Fed's Poole U.S. Fed chief sees economic 'traction' Fed's McTeer confident on economy Economy steady but job growth moderate posted by Ed | Innovation in upstate New York Saturday, September 11, 2004 Civic leaders in older industrial regions often wonder whether they can move their economies to a new platform for growth. They should look at Albany and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). Last week, RPI opened its $100 million Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies building. Read more. Visit the web site. Go. Also last week, the Council on Competitiveness held a regional summit. Read more. And here's a good article on how biotechnology in the region is gaining momentum. Read more. posted by Ed | Vermont and NH compete for DoD manufacturing center The Department of Defense makes investments to establish manufacturing centers of excellence. New Hampshire and Vermont are competing for the latest manufacturing technology center. Learn more. posted by Ed | Developing chamber services for the Hispanic community The Clarksville, TN Chamber of Commerce is innovating in important ways. It has formed a partnership to address the concerns of the county's 7,000 Hispanic citizens. By working with the Tennessee Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Clarksville Chamber is getting out ahead of an important demographic shift: the growth of our nation's Hispanic population. Read more. posted by Ed | Saying "region" is easier than "doing region" The Triad region of North Carolina is finding out how tough it is to sell yourself as a region. Despite making good progress in the past year, rivalries still get in the way. Read more. posted by Ed | St. Louis and the challenges of financing development I guess the message on this one should be, "Beware of consultants with canned solutions". St. Louis has ditched an idea to establish a new housing fund, after they concluded that the housing markets in St. Louis and California were a bit different. Read more. (The same consultant is promoting the same idea elsewhere. Read more.) posted by Ed | Wake County goes after non-wovens When most of us think about textiles, we don't see a very attractive target for business development. After all, textiles moved from the Northern states to the Southern states in the 1950's. And for a couple of decades, the South has been losing textile jobs (despite efforts to slow the trend through trade agreements like the Multi-Fiber Agreement). But what about non-woven textiles? Now this is a growth market, and Wake County, North Carolina is building a base to develop these businesses. Through a collaboration with North Carolina State, Wake County is launching a new economic development strategy targeted at these businesses. Read more. Wake County's strategy represents a smart alliance with a local university. Nonwoven fabrics cover a wide range of technologies. They include, for example, those handiwipes that you use to clean up kitchen spills. They are natural or man-made fibers that are not converted to yarn. They are bonded together by a variety of means, such as heat or adhesives. Nonwoven fabrics have a wide variety of applications, such as clean room apparel, air conditioning filters, floor covers, diapers, and airline pillow case covers. posted by Ed | Model training program in biotech For a number of years, CityLab in Boston has stood as one of my favorite job training programs for the biosciences. Housed at Boston University, CityLab provides a nine month training program for high school graduates interested in a life sciences career. CityLab Academy’s free curriculum trains students in commonly used research techniques, such as cell culture and protein purification. CityLab recently received a major grant to expand its activities. Read more. You can learn more by visiting the CityLab web site. Go. posted by Ed | Georgia Tech's Procurement Assistance Center Years ago, when I launched my first regional economic development strategy in Northwest Louisiana, I included an initiative to help smaller companies break into the government procurement market. It turned out that this initiative was one of the best ideas in the entire strategy. The program still is operating after nearly twenty years. Last year, the Northwest Louisiana Government Procurement Center assisted minority-owned, women-owned, and other small businesses in obtaining more than 52.8 million in government contract awards. Visit the web site. If you are involved in a government procurement initiative, you'll be interested in reading how the Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center is helping companies in Georgia ride the new wave of spending for homeland security. Read more. posted by Ed | New Jersey creates three innovation zones Outgoing governor James McGreevey has created innovation zones within his state through an executive order. Read more. Governor Rendell in Pennsylvania developed the concept of innovation zones to spur business development around the state's universities. Learn more about Pennsylvania's innovation zone initiative. The New Jersey governor's executive order creates three innovation zones: in Newark; in the greater New Brunswick area; and in Camden. They will surround and include the campuses of the New Jersey Institute of Technology, Rutgers University, and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. posted by Ed | Balancing geographic equity and technology focus When a state launches a technology-led economic development strategy, support often comes from the business community. But there is one inherent political weakness in these strategies. They focus resources in urban areas. So, as a consequence, rural legislators often feel left out. Managing the tension between geographic balance and technology focus represents a central challenge for state technology strategy. The Iowa Values Fund will be confronting this challenge in the next legislative session. Read more. posted by Ed | Resource: Good article on manufacturing challenges Here's a good article written about a year ago on manufacturing. It comes from a conference put on by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, as part of their Midwest Manufacturing Project. The article summarizes the challenges facing manufacturing from a number of different perspectives. One portion of the article makes an interesting point about the blurring lines between manufacturing and services. As manufacturers move up the value chain, more and more services are embedded in their businesses. Another section of the article highlights the presentation by Upjohn Institute economist Timothy Bartik, who emphasized the importance of providing services to smaller and mid-sized companies. Bartik makes the good points that effective service offerings are often complex, and not enough is done to evaluate what works. Read more. posted by Ed | Western Michigan hears the message of regional competitiveness In another of it series of reports to regions around the country, the Council of Competitiveness reported on the competitive that Western Michigan faces. Read more. In partnership with the Economic Development Administration, the Council has completed projects recently in Central New Mexico; Northeast Ohio; Wilmington, Delaware; and the Inland Northwest region of Washington and Idaho. posted by Ed | Ohio State makes venture investment Ohio State University is making an investment commitment to launch a new venture capital firm. The seed fund, Oval Ventures LLC, is targeting a first round of $15 million. OSU has committed an investment of 10 percent of the fund, up to $1.5 million. If the fund managers begin making investments with less than $15 million, OSU's portion will be less. None of the money, including OSU's, will come into the fund until the fund closes. The managers hope to close the fund by the end of the year. Read more. posted by Ed | Duke Power lowers rates in SC Duke Power is interested inhelping manufacturers in South Carolina. The SC Public Service Commission has approved a plan for Duke Power to reduce industrial rates by 2.8% for a year, starting October 1. Read more. posted by Ed | More on the offshore debate from California Wednesday, September 08, 2004 The debate on offshoring continues in California. On of the major issues of outsourcing is maintaining confidentiality. This concern is particularly serious with medical records, for example. Here's the latest from the Left Coast. Read more. posted by Ed | Iowa fixes Values Fund...barely Iowa's governor and legislature reached an uneasy compromise to fix the Iowa Values Fund. The state's supreme court had struck down an earlier version. Read more Before the court acted, the State had made commitments under the original version of the fund. It faced a major setback if it did not follow through on those commitments. No one seems happy with the compromise, though. Iowa may have fixed a short term problem, but the long term strategy for the state remains cloudy. For more background go here. posted by Ed | We're getting older In the months and years ahead, we will be seeing more stories on the aging of our workforce. Read more. This problem is shared across developed economies. Until about a century ago, people aged 65 and over never amounted to more than 2 or 3 percent of the population. Today, in the developed world, they amount to 15 percent. By the year 2030, they will be around 25 percent. Learn more from the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The challenge in our country is heightened by a remarkably inefficient education system. In brief, we are producing too few young people will sufficient skills to replace workers who are retiring. posted by Ed | Economy Watch Sunday, September 05, 2004 Here are the articles from last week that can help you keep up with the economy. Chief executives forecast a healthy U.S. economy U.S. workers lose ground U.S. job picture brightens with more August hiring Vital Signs for the Week of Sept. 6 Slowing U.S. productivity could signal new hiring Economic reality bites Consumer confidence fell sharply in August Bonds Won't Get Off Stage US Treasuries surge amid fresh economic jitters Survey: Nation's economic growth slipping I Am an Economic Girlie-Man August Jobs: Better Than Good Enough posted by Ed | Web Watch: WorkSource Oregon Oregon has an impressive partnership in workforce development. WorkSource Oregon is a network of public and private partners statewide established by the governor in partnership with the Oregon Work Force Investment Board. On one level, the WorkSource web site does a good job in segmenting its audience and providing clear "channels" for businesses, individuals, and workforce staff. View the site. At the same time, the Oregon Employment Department does a good job presenting workforce information in an accessible way. Too often, state labor departments provide information that is too difficult to understand or interpret. Oregon provides a good alternative. The name of their site: www.qualityinfo.org. posted by Ed | Promoting regeneration development in Nashville One of the bigger challenges facing larger cities is "in-fill" or "adaptive reuse" development. In the UK, these development strategies fall under the umbrella term "regeneration". (To learn more about these strategies in the UK, start with this web site.) Redeveloping older areas is more complicated for developers, even though it makes more sense from a regional viewpoint. Infrastructure is already in place. In contrast, sprawl development typically requires major new investments in water, sewer, utilities, schools, and public safety. Nashville is moving toward a more aggressive plan to provide developers with incentives to redevelop older properties. The incentives will include more flexibility with requirements involving parking and floor-area ratios, the elimination of density restrictions, and streamlined administrative procedures for variances. Read more. posted by Ed | Minnesota Investment Network Here's a good article on Minnesota's evolving networks for start-up finance. The article focuses on the operations of the Minnesota Investment Network. (Thanks to Christian Gibbons for passing this one on.) Read more. Visit the Network's web site. Go. posted by Ed | Thinking regionally from a rural perspective Here are a couple of good perspectives on how rural areas can think more regionally. The first article comes from Garden City, Kansas. Garden City has a population of 28,000 and is located in western Kansas. Joseph Alstrup, a political science professor from the University of Kansas, outlined how regionalism in rural areas requires cooperation, not competition. Read more. The second perspective comes from Sturgis, MI, a city of 11,000 on the border with Indiana. The idea is to develop a corridor between Sturgis and Lagrange for economic development. Learn more. posted by Ed | Competing in the global economy: A view from Minnesota Like other states, Minnesota has been hit hard by more intense global competition. But unlike a lot of places, the Minneapolis papers are working hard to explain this new world to their readers. Here's a good article that explores the complexities of outsourcing. Read more As the article notes, "[T]he numbers so far show fewer U.S. workers being affected than the rhetoric would suggest". posted by Ed | Michigan expands wireless to state parks Michigan is pushing wireless out into ten state parks and rest areas. For this Labor Day, Michigan has two parks with available wireless. Read more. posted by Ed | Buffalo integrates arts into economic development Add Buffalo to the list of cities that are moving arts into the main stream of their economic development strategies. Learn more. posted by Ed | U.S. falling behind in broadband deployments Saturday, September 04, 2004 The U.S. is generally behind other developed economies in the deployment of broadband networks. In a global economy where growth links tightly to knowledge, this trend can focus our attention on new public policies to catch up. According to Business Week: "The U.S. has steadily fallen behind other nations, both in terms of the share of the population with broadband and the speed of those connections." Read more. posted by Ed | Minnesota knowledge cluster conference Lee Munnich at the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota passes this reminder along. On September 13 and 14, the Institute will be hosting a conference on "Knowledge Clusters and Entrepreneurship in Regional Economic Development". You can register on the conference web site. posted by Ed | Philadelphia's innovative business plan competition A group of busiess development professionals in Philadelphia have launched a new kind of business plan competition. The competition targets Philadelphia's "New Profiteers": entrepreneurs focused on creating sustainable and socially responsible businesses. The competition will offer the winner $250,000 in equity financing. The winning plan will demonstrate how to capture superior opportunities in three areas: high growth potential, social responsibility, and environmental responsibility. Learn more. posted by Ed | Court strikes down Ohio's investment tax credit In a unanimous ruling by a three judge panel, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati struck down Ohio's investment tax credit as a violation of the commerce clause of the U.S. constitution. Read more. The commerce clause focuses on maintaining free and open trade among the states. The basic principle is neutrality: a tate may not enact legislation that discriminates against interstate commerce. Hopefully, the decision will trigger a movement away from using the tax code to encourage targeted investment. The best tax strategy for states is to broaden the tax base and lower the rates across the board. Special tax breaks are largely ineffective, and they increase the costs for tax administration. They also encourage companies to "game the system". The decision will have immediate impact in the states covered by the court's jurisdiction: Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and Tennessee. State officials in Kentucky are already reviewing the decision. Read more. And the plaitiff's attorney in the Ohio case believes that the federal apppeals court decision places tax credits issued by the Michigan Economic Growth Authority in "very substantial doubt". Read more. Since its establishment in 1995, MEGA has provided over $1.7 billion in tax credits to over 200 projects. In Ohio, the state's Attorney General may request a rehearing before the court's full 12 member panel. At the same time, if we are lucky, the court's decision will trigger a deeply needed reform of Ohio's tax structure. Read more. The court's decision is sure to be cited in other states where taxpayers are challenging the constitutionality of special tax breaks for economic development. For example, a plaintiff in Nebraska has already indicated that he will move for an expedited decision based on the Ohio case. Read more. Somewhere between 35 and 40 states have tax creidtis similar to Ohio's. Interestingly, the 6th Circuit opinion did not strike down Ohio's local property tax exemptions. Plaintiffs challenged these provisions on similar grounds. The court also indicated that direct subsidies to firms, as opposed to tax credits, would not violate the Commerce Clause. While not part of the court's holding in this case, the court's opinion may move away from "tax expenditures" as a way to encourage economic development. You can read the opinion from this page. posted by Ed | Maine's governor presses the creative economy button Thursday, September 02, 2004 Maine's governor is pushing the notion of a creative economy for his state. He is launching a Creative Economy Council, and he will make $100,000 available for a festival in Bangor. The governor's initiative sounds like good intentions, but it looks like he needs a more detailed investment plan. Read more. posted by Ed | Learning the value of rural broadband The Blandin Foundation in Minnesota has launched a new broadband initiative. The foundation is putting money into educating community leaders in rural Minnesota on the value of broadband. A recent study showed that only 15% of rural residents are signing up for broadband service in the state. Read more. posted by Ed | Philadelphia considers a citywide, wireless network Wednesday, September 01, 2004 Philadelphia may go WiFi. The city's chief information officer has solicited proposals to create a citywide network. She estimates that the capital costs to set up the network at $10 million. Annual operating expenses would be about $1.5 million. Read more. posted by Ed | And you thought your life was tough If you are ever having a bad day, you need to think about this guy. Read more. posted by Ed | |
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