Miami Valley Metropatterns: A Regional Agenda for Community and Stability in the Miami Valley

Can’t We All Get Along? Public Officials’ Attitudes toward Regionalism as a Solution to Metropolitan Problems in a Rust Belt Community

“…Poverty in the inner city, however, can spread to surrounding areas. Orfield and Luce (2001) point out although poverty and economic and social need are heavily concentrated in the cities of Youngstown and Warren, these problems are now found in several suburbs closest to these cities and in a few townships and villages in the region. The growth of poverty in these areas is demonstrated by the fact that many schools in the inner-suburban school districts showed a greater than average increase in the 1990s in free lunch eligibility rates.…”

“…Pursuing this goal, however, demands examination of a community’s public services issue, and this is a challenge for some municipalities in the Mahoning Valley. As Orfield and Luce (2001:1) explain, “the ability of local governments in the Mahoning Valley to raise revenues for important local services is distributed very unevenly across the region with places such as the city of Youngstown and Warren with the greatest needs for public services showing the lowest local tax capacities.” In order to generate revenues to pay for the public services, these areas must assess relatively high tax rates on industry and businesses, and therefore drive future economic development out.…”

“…A JEDD (Joint Economic Development District) is a separate political entity created by a city and township, and it promotes cooperation and economic growth in the district while maintaining city and township autonomy (PFM Group 2008). Orfield and Luce (2001) looked at the social, demographic, and economic patterns in the Mahoning Valley and subsequently reported that the Valley’s social and economic polarization and wasteful development patterns were a threat to the region. They recommended a strong, multifaceted regional response to these threats.…”

“…While successful cooperative agreements between communities in the region have recently occurred, no comprehensive form of regionalism has been accepted to date. Nevertheless, in their study of “Ohio’s Mahoning Valley Regional Metropatterns,” Orfield and Luce (2001:16) point out, “researchers, public policy experts, and a number of local organizations in the Mahoning Valley region are beginning to call for a strong, multifaceted, regional response to the challenges in the region as it grows.” Consequently, the director of the Youngstown Office of Economic Development requested a study be conducted to examine public officials’ attitudes toward regionalism. This article discusses that study and the findings and offers suggestions to those who are interested in promoting regionalism in the Youngstown-Warren metropolitan area.…”

The role of community‐based, problem‐centered information intermediaries in local problem solving

“…But it is also the poorest city in that state. The median income in Hartford is one-sixth that of Connecticut's most affluent municipality (Orfield & Luce, 2003). During the 1990s, Hartford lost 13 percent of its population -the largest decline in the state.…”