The coming jobs war and Akron, Ohio’s serious boot camp
May 15th, 2012
This week, Gallup CEO Jim Clifton spoke at the annual meeting of University Park Alliance (UPA). Here is a man who travels the world, gathering information about cities, countries and economies. Engage him in conversation, and he can quote economic statistics from a dozen different locales.
So when he spoke to nearly 600 people at our annual meeting, it was encouraging to hear him speak of many of the same elements for economic success that we are building upon in Akron.
Clifton, who has just written the book, “The Coming Jobs War,” argues that America’s future economic strength and standing as the world’s largest economy depends on whether we can nurture entrepreneurs on the local level. In his view, innovative, proactive and collaborative leadership within the nation’s cities will be essential to our prosperity and ability to create new jobs.
“Innovation has no value whatsoever until it has a customer next to it,’’ Clifton said. This is why local leaders should embrace entrepreneurs, so that innovation, particularly emanating from universities, translates into jobs and economic growth at home, not afar.
Clifton recognizes Akron as an example of a city with an “intentional” strategy to draw on existing strengths to revitalize the economic base of our core city.
In my job, as someone working in urban revitalization at the local level, Clifton’s points resonate deeply, because my task is the practical work of putting high economic ideals into practice. UPA’s vision for economic growth relies on a “coalition of the willing” consisting of local leaders, businesses and residents eager to support entrepreneurship, good housing, education, walkable neighborhoods and an overall high quality of life.
Our redevelopment plan for a 50-block area in Akron’s core centers on the idea of creating a holistic environment that inspires entrepreneurial activity. UPA’s partners include The University of Akron and three local hospitals as key institutions in a biomedical corridor. Because of this alliance, supported with economic data analysis and architectural plans, we have attracted the global real estate firm KUD International as project manager and financial guarantor for millions of dollars in redevelopment.
We were honored that KUD executives joined us at our luncheon, along with officials from the company’s Japanese parent, Kajima Corp.
The presence of international guests speaks to Akron’s vision. In decades past, our city suffered the pain of globalization with the loss of much of our manufacturing base related to rubber. Now we are looking to fully engage once again in the global economy, by drawing on polymer expertise at The University of Akron, the biomedical expertise in our hospitals and the entrepreneurial energy emerging from our collaborations.
Clifton’s comments validate our basic premise: That it’s up to local communities, and local leaders, to set a new economic course. Some cities will succeed in this and others will not. Success is about a roadmap. It’s about seed money, mentorship and incubation for start-up businesses. It’s about STEM schools, such as the one we have in University Park. It’s about scholarships for students, and grants to young entrepreneurs — such as we announced at our luncheon. And importantly, it’s about the coalition of the willing.
In practice, the work of getting organizations to work together is tedious and often difficult. Ultimately, team leaders are those who are willing and those who believe.
At our luncheon, KUD’s CEO, Marvin Suomi reinforced the value of coalition of the willing and how rare a thing it is. KUD chose to invest in Akron, he said, because our civic leaders worked together to develop a clear vision, backed by solid planning. In short, they applied the same due diligence that investors expect before committing to any new business venture.
Because local leaders took initiative, Akron’s entrepreneurial plans are now financially supported by a global real estate developer.
All this is happening in a city that could be called the Rustbelt. We think of ourselves as putting on a new belt. We invite you to subscribe to the CoreMatters blog to follow our progress.
Posted in UP Akron | No Comments »
National Day of Prayer in University Park
May 10th, 2012
Dear University Park friends,
The University Park Alliance (UPA) staff extends our deep thanks for the amazing prayer service held in support of our work on the recent National Day of Prayer. We especially thank the host of the event, Pastor Ron Shultz of Family of Faith United Methodist Church on East Market Street.
It means everything to us to be worthy of this high expression of community support, with Rev. Shultz and fellow University Park pastors leading friends and neighbors in song and prayer for the success of our urban revitalization efforts. These prayers remain in our hearts. They are prayers that guide our work as we join with city officials, business and institutional leaders and neighbors alike to improve safety, housing, wellness and job opportunities in the 50-block area that comprises University Park.
As we carry out this important work, we are ever mindful that it takes all of us working as a team to overcome challenges and negative influences. Civic engagement is essential to achieving the goal of community transformation.
We at University Park Alliance are committed to the neighborhood and its people. By choosing to pray for our work, you expressed your commitment to the work at hand. We hope to see you all at our Neighborhood Summit on June 16 from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Quaker Square. Lunch and childcare will be provided. The nonprofit America Speaks will help facilitate the event with technological assistance from The University of Akron. The purpose of the Summit is to celebrate our progress to date, shape new initiatives, and provide a forum to connect neighbors with leaders in the City and from anchor institutions within University Park.
Register online at www.surveymonkey.com/s/UPASummit
For more information please contact David Robinson at DRobinson@upakron.com
With faith in a common mission, we look forward to achieving success together for the benefit of all who live, learn and work in this great place we call University Park.
Sincerely,
Eric Anthony Johnson, Executive Director
Carol Murphy, Chief of Staff
Posted in Collaboration, Leadership, Placemaking, University Park Alliance, UP Akron | No Comments »
How a major philanthropic effort is fueling Akron’s economic makeover
April 17th, 2012
Originally posted by Dr. Eric Anthony Johnson to Living Cities’ The Catalyst blog on
If you don’t know Akron, Ohio, you might be surprised to find a major charitable foundation deeply invested in creating an entirely new urban landscape that will support and encourage new economic activity in this former Rubber Capital of the World.
However, if you know Akron, you know this is where the late John S. and James L. Knight got their start as newspaper greats, and it seems fitting that the Knight legacy continues to shape the city’s future in an extraordinary way.
Because of Knight Foundation investment, Akron has a new organizational structure in place to ensure that we systematically draw on the strengths of our anchor institutions in order to generate new economic opportunity. At University Park Alliance (UPA), our role is to do the practical work, as discussed in Marian Urquilla’s March 29 blog post, to align “disparate actors” toward common goals. Our approach mirrors Ms. Urquilla’s recommended strategy in that our focus is clearly and narrowly defined. Last year, for example, UPA developed a Core City Vision Plan to revitalize a 50-block area around The University of Akron; architectural renderings illustrate our concept of an urban lifestyle in an environment of research, education, innovation and civic engagement.
If Akron presents a new model for such an ambitious undertaking, it is because we have strong anchor institutions and civic leaders who work collaboratively together. UPA’s job as a nonprofit community development corporation is to leverage these anchor institutions so that new development occurs within the core of our city, ultimately blurring geographic lines between the downtown, the university and three regional hospitals all in close proximity.
Our vision calls for major capital investments within the context of the highest ideals in urban planning. Priorities include livability, walkability, mixed-use density and high quality of life for people.
Recently, Akron gained national attention by drawing in the international real estate firm KUD International as project manager and financial backer of large-scale capital investments in our target area. KUD’s corporate leaders made it clear: They came because of the strength of our master redevelopment plan, our team of community leaders and our assessment of current economic activity as an indicator of future potential.
Most recently, new research by Tripp Umbach projects that by 2030, the implementation of our Core City Vision Plan will generate $1.8 billion in economic activity, $90 million tax revenue and 14,392 jobs.
As a traditional manufacturing city, Akron could just as easily see a future of further decline. Consider this profile of Akron from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey 2010:
- Unemployment at 16.2 percent, compared to a national average of 10.8
- Median household income of $31,171, compared to $50,046 for the nation as a whole
- A population decline of 8.3 percent since 2000 while the nation’s population increased by 9.9 percent during the same period
However, today Akron looks poised for growth with Knight Foundation as a critical partner.
By taking philanthropy to a new level — through investment in an organizational structure that can propel new growth — the Knight Foundation helped Akron create a necessary new toolbox to carry out a growth strategy in a way anchor institutions could not do independently.
Today, what’s special in Akron is the gritty, audacious push to make this city a towering example of the power to plan locally for global success. We in Akron have a big view of the concept of collaboration. For us, it’s about channeling resources in a way that can make Akron a global competitor — while creating an attractive place where people can work and live and enjoy a high quality of life.
We view ourselves as a model for how a city can draw on existing assets, leverage a spirit of collaboration among community leaders, and pave the way for new prosperity as a real alternative for older cities.
Posted in UP Akron | No Comments »
Intelligent Optimism: A buzzword finds new meaning in Akron
February 22nd, 2012
People still ask why I came to Akron. I tell them that the longer I’m here, the more evidence I see that Akron has the components to attract talent, as well as national attention, on the merit of economic redevelopment potential that stands to become a model for traditional American cities seeking a new and prosperous future.
Because I wasn’t born here, I weighed the possibility of living and working here with detachment. Having spent my career in cities around the country, I understood the pitfalls of urban redevelopment plans — and there are plenty of them.
Yet in Akron, I saw something rare. To borrow from a buzzword, I saw “intelligent optimism” on the part of city leaders planning an economic revitalization. Akron enjoys solid planning, backed by years of effort to draw on an existing knowledge base, to develop a new economic base that is global in reach. Importantly, a talented development team and collaborative leadership backs the local effort.
Recently, the scope of Akron’s potential came into clearer view with a new analysis that builds on a 2011 Tripp Umbach, of Pittsburgh, assessment of existing economic activity among anchor institutions. The latest data, coming in a pair of studies by Tripp Umbach and Tetra Tech of Arlington, Va., indicates that $2.5 billion in current spending in the core of Akron — just as a result of anchor institutions — has the potential to increase to $4.3 billion a year by 2030 with implementation UPA’s strategic plans.
The Akron Beacon Journal, a voice of critical commentary, referred to the studies as lending “a measure of concreteness to the opportunity and the promise.”
The promise is further bolstered by the presence of the global real estate firm KUD International, which signed a master services agreement in 2011 to develop projects outlined in UPA’s master plan to revitalize four districts in downtown Akron.
As an investor, KUD’s CEO Marvin Suomi also came here as an outsider. Suomi’s optimism over Akron’s economic future developed out of the due diligence that his company applied in assessing Akron’s potential to grow economically.
My prediction: Expect more outsiders to come to Akron. There is opportunity here.
We now enjoy a clear and accelerated strategy to execute a vision that will forever change our city. Intelligent optimism, in Akron’s case, emerges out of planning followed by action and investment with an eye toward transformational change.
Tags: Collaboration, Leadership, University Park Alliance, Vision
Posted in Collaboration, Leadership, University Park Alliance | No Comments »
Beyond boundaries
February 7th, 2012
This guest blog entry is provided by Dr. Luis M. Proenza, president of The University of Akron
By Luis M. Proenza
Our vision for Akron and all of Northeast Ohio is of a place where the artificial boundaries that separate university and community blur and become irrelevant.
As a metropolitan-sited institution, The University of Akron aligns itself with the local and regional community to build economic, social and physical health. We seek the development of an innovation ecosystem that encompasses campuses, business districts and neighborhoods. In physical terms, our vision is of a vibrant, mixed-use environment that is pedestrian friendly and in which everything that happens is somehow about learning and health and wellness.
Economically, we are strong proponents of collective impact, and have established a broad-based and robust platform for regional economic development, which has come to be known as the “Akron Model.” As this exemplar attracts national attention for strides in economic revitalization, we are increasingly asked how and why we are achieving success.
We explain that a changing economy or changing technological underpinnings of any industry require the institutions, themselves, to change, and that the Akron Model provides a useful framework for such a transformation.
We demonstrate how, through innovative collaborations, initiatives and interactions, metropolitan-sited institutions can play a vital role in sustaining and growing their regions in this global, knowledge and conceptual economy. And we tell them that, beyond the many statistics and facts that detail our successes, the most important outcome of the Akron Model is the least quantifiable and most intangible. It is a kind of entrepreneurial optimism, a belief that our collective impact can achieve audacious goals and improbable outcomes.
The Akron Model enables us to believe that we can accomplish bold endeavors because we have accomplished bold endeavors, and we will continue to do so by using the Akron Model as our framework.
For example, our partnership with three regional health care centers and a nearby medical school, supported by additional public, private and philanthropic entities, launched the Austen BioInnovation Institute in Akron in 2008. The institute seeks to establish Akron as the world’s leading location for biomaterials and medicine, and health care innovation and commercialization. Because of the university’s strength in synthetic materials and polymer research, we chose to focus on innovations that would draw on our existing knowledge base.
Another key component of the Akron Model is the University Park Alliance (UPA), which was established more than a decade ago with major support from The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. This neighborhood revitalization initiative catalyzes community engagement and private investment in a 50-block area adjacent to campus.
UPA continues to attract additional partners, who have brought new capabilities and vitality to the organization. The latest member to join the UPA team is the global real estate firm, KUD International, a subsidiary of the Japanese construction company Kajima Corporation. KUD signed a master services agreement in 2011 to develop projects outlined in UPA’s master plan to revitalize four districts in downtown Akron.
In commenting on Akron’s new relationship with KUD, The Wall Street Journal noted that many real estate investors pass over the nation’s midsection, while Akron now looks to the potential for hundreds of millions of dollars in construction and renovations, including new housing, offices and retail development.
Northeast Ohio can compete in today’s global marketplace, but to do so we must act regionally and collaboratively, we must welcome partners from across the globe as well as from across the street, and we must be bold in our vision, thinking and action.
Dr. Luis M. Proenza is president of The University of Akron, and a member of the executive committee for the Council on Competitiveness, and the Government-University-Industry-Research Roundtable of the National Academies.
Tags: Anchor Institutions, Austen BioInnovation Institute, Collaboration, Knight Foundation, Leadership, The University of Akron, University Park Alliance
Posted in Collaboration, Education, Leadership | No Comments »
Akron makes MSN Real Estate’s list of top 5 real estate markets — want to know why?
January 17th, 2012
The news site MSN Real Estate just cited Akron, Ohio, as one of the five “most promising” real estate markets in the nation, defined by those markets expected to suffer the smallest slides. The forecasting firm Local Market Monitor made the picks.
The MSN report notes that Akron’s average home price of $148,508 fell by 4% in the last year, and that the local market should hit bottom this year followed by a modest 2% gain in 2013. “Jobs — especially manufacturing jobs — are coming back to Akron,’’ the report said. “Like many Midwest cities, there was no housing boom here to speak of. Values are down just 13% from the peak, about a third of the hit the U.S. as a whole suffered.”
On its face, the fact that Akron’s real estate market is to drop less than most others across the country may seem nothing to feel good about. A city doesn’t grow with soft real estate market. But if you look beneath the surface, there is reason for those of us in Akron to see opportunity ahead. The ranking also is affirmation of our economic recovery as we separate ourselves from the pack of traditional manufacturing cities stuck in the doldrums.
As the Harvard urban economist Ed Glaeser points out in his book Triumph of the City, not every once prosperous city can be restored to economic strength. But some cities can be saved.
The issue for cities today is who can and who cannot produce goods locally and sell them globally.
In Akron, we are maintaining and building a job base in traditional industries while creating new-economy jobs through the development of a vibrant medical industry.
On the traditional side, we’ve added jobs as a result in the uptick in the auto industry, plus we have Goodyear, Bridgestone Americas and nearby Diebold all building new corporate facilities here with a combined capital investment of $360 million.
On the new economy side, the business and university leaders in Akron have come together around a plan, primarily funded by the Knight Foundation, to leverage the economic synergy of our four major anchor institutions — The University of Akron, Summa Health System, Akron General Health System and Akron Children’s Hospital — to build a competitive city with a diverse economy. Seeing this potential, KUD International is now the project manager and major financial backer of the redevelopment of University Park — the 50-block are surrounding The University of Akron and bordering Akron’s three major hospitals. That signals hundreds of millions in capital investment beginning in 2012 and continuing through this decade.
Rather than coincidence, Akron’s ranking among MSN Real Estate’s Top 5 cities is a result of years of planning and proactive leadership in this city, which then led to new investment in the local economy.
University Park Alliance is particularly focused on revitalizing real estate in a 50-block area around the university. It is an area of great opportunity. Call us at 330-777-2070 if you are interested in learning more.
Tags: Anchor Institutions, Collaboration, Knight Foundation, Placemaking, real estate, The University of Akron, University Park Alliance, Urban Neighborhoods
Posted in Collaboration, Education, Leadership, University Park Alliance, UP Akron | No Comments »
Award-winning promotions for Akron’s University Park speak to real plans, real substance
December 15th, 2011
It’s more than blah, blah, blah. A good marketing campaign for your community should go to the core of why people want to live, work and do business there. It’s up to each community to create an image of itself, backed by substance, to convey its unique competitive advantages.
No question, the perception of so-called “legacy” manufacturing cities tends to be old and uninviting, even in places where there is rebuilding. How does a community change that image?
Recently, the Mid-America Economic Development Council recognized Akron’s University Park Alliance as No. 1 among large communities in ten Midwestern states for its “Community Promotion and Marketing Program” and No. 2 for its website and online communications.
On top of that, UPA’s print marketing campaign placed No. 1 in Ohio’s annual Excellence in Economic Development Marketing competition for large communities, sponsored by the Ohio Economic Development Association (OEDA).
We’re proud of how we’ve promoted University Park through beautiful materials and online communications that reflect a new reality for Akron, which is a long way from its smoke-stack past. Most of all, we’re proud of the message that we can honestly convey about a new, emerging University Park in Akron, Ohio.
It’s not about talk. It’s about a whole lot of hard work, and collaborative planning among leaders of our city over many years. A substantive growth plan helps tell an effective economic development story.
Posted in UP Akron | No Comments »
A unified vision drives redevelopment
December 2nd, 2011
If you want to get a glimpse of what’s possible in the area of urban redevelopment, take a trip to Milwaukee. I was among a group of business and civic leaders from Akron who recently visited that city to gain insights into their successes and learn how they are tackling ongoing challenges. It was an energizing experience for two reasons. One, I was impressed by what our gracious hosts had accomplished. Two, I knew Akron was embarking on much the same path, with what I believe to be great promise for the future.
Milwaukee is taking advantage of its own unique resources. The city is reinventing itself by systematically drawing on assets that already are part of the town. The Milwaukee River runs through the city’s heart, a characteristic the city has done well to capitalize on.
Milwaukee now has its vibrant RiverWalk along three miles of the central city. RiverWalk beautifully defines what’s new and promising about Milwaukee. You’ll find high-end housing, stores, restaurants and open walkways for art shows, music and festivals. This is the kind of place where people want to work, live and spend their time.
What was the critical first step to producing RiverWalk? Key community leaders came together and worked through the planning. City leaders talked to each other. That’s how the complex became a reality. While collaboration may seem to be a simple concept, it doesn’t happen everywhere. This kind of collaborative approach is what Akron and Milwaukee have in common.
Photo Credit: Wikipedia
Too often, communities are disrupted by siloed agencies, government bureaucracy and a divided business and nonprofit leadership. Communication is inconsistent.
In Akron, as in Milwaukee, a unified vision drives redevelopment efforts. With this kind of sharp focus on a viable future, University Park Alliance recently attracted KUD International, a leading international real estate developer, to be the project manager on the revitalization of a 50-block core area of our city.
This is a tremendous victory for our community, but it didn’t occur overnight. It is an outgrowth of years of city leaders talking to each other, weighing possibilities on how to parlay existing assets into new opportunities, and then creating the right structure to enable success.
UPA exists for this reason. We were created as a real estate development corporation to advance deals — such as the one with our new real estate development partner, KUD.
Akron’s leaders were so persistent in the need for this type of new organizational structure that they convinced the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to provide the necessary major funding.
This is the new-economy approach. It’s about leaders coming together, assessing unique strengths that already exist, developing creative financing and ultimately, creating and executing a master plan for implementation.
Yes, RiverWalk is a fantastic achievement other cities no doubt hope to emulate in one form or fashion. You’ll see if you visit. Akron, too, is building its own success. In the coming months and years, Akron and UPA will host leaders from other cities, and share our secrets to redevelopment success. Of this, I am quite sure.
Tags: Akron Beacon Journal, Collaboration, Community, Leadership, Placemaking, Urban Neighborhoods, Vision, Walkability
Posted in Leadership, Placemaking, University Park Alliance, UP Akron | No Comments »
To Gallup CEO Jim Clifton: Akron, Ohio, is your example
November 11th, 2011
To understand the transformation happening in Akron, Ohio, read the new book “The Coming Jobs War” by Gallup CEO Jim Clifton.
One of Clifton’s main points is that major economic problems can only be solved one city at a time, and the real fix is in the creation of new jobs. He’s right. Without decent jobs, people are miserable and lack stability. Clifton offers a 10-part approach on what to do. And guess what? He outlines the exact approach we are taking in Akron, and through the redevelopment efforts of University Park Alliance. It’s also exactly why Akron is gaining national attention for drawing on the sheer force of its own perseverance to push our way into the global economy. Do we still have a long way to go to create the good new jobs that Clifton talks about? Sure we do.
But in following the steps Clifton identifies in his book, we in Akron have been able to catalyze significant new development.
Most recently, UPA entered into a partnership with a premier international real estate developer to serve as project manager in the regeneration of a 50-block area around The University of Akron. By The Wall Street Journal’s estimate, KUD International’s decision to invest here positions Akron for hundreds of millions in new capital investment — on the heels of $500 million in recent construction by the university, not to mention huge investments by our three local hospitals. We’re really talking about the remaking of an entire urban landscape.
Other recent national attention includes:
- The New York Times mentioned Akron in a story in which a Brookings Institution fellow raises the specter of the Great Lakes as a renaissance region:
- In September, a new Brookings Institution analysis noted that with a rebound of manufacturing, especially in the automotive industry, Akron now ranks among the 20 best-performing metropolitan economies for its rate of recovery.
Clifton is dead-on in the points he makes in his book. We in Akron are dead-on with our direction and vision. In fact, we are several years down the road Clifton recommends. Just take a look at this excerpt from Clifton’s book.
Clifton describes his “war on job loss, on low workplace energy, on healthcare costs, on low graduation rates, on brain drain, and on community disengagement.”
He explains further: “Every city needs a team to work on the alignment, focus, and strategies that put all businesses and local institutions of absolutely every kind on the same page. “
Akron has that aligned team. We are on the same page. And we are working toward a common goal. In the future, the results will be truly exciting.
Posted in UP Akron | No Comments »
Building blocks for 50 blocks
October 24th, 2011
In a column on Sunday, the Akron Beacon Journal’s Editorial Page Editor notes that University Park Alliance has reached a new level with its partnership with the international real estate development firm KUD International. Calling the alliance “a triumph,” the column refers to Akron as a “city with an opportunity to take long strides toward distinction and competitiveness.” Read the full commentary by Michael Douglas.
Posted in UP Akron | No Comments »
