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Center City Gains Residents, But Not Jobs

Posted by: Brenda Meyer
Thanks to: Brenda Meyer
10 June 2005 - 7:00am

The historic Philadelphia-area city has been part of a concerted effort to rebuild, but housing, not retail, is where the money is.

"Thanks in part to a 10-year property-tax abatement enacted in 1997, residential construction has taken off not just in Center City but in several other nearby neighborhoods. In Center City, this new housing just furthers the trend of the past decade, in which the downtown population rose 8 percent even as the city as a whole continued to lose residents, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. This virtuous cycle has even spread to neighborhoods such as Spring Garden, Northern Liberties, Bella Vista, Southwark, Southwest Center City and beyond.

But instead of reinforcing Center City's historic role as the region's biggest employment center, all this activity is instead creating the region's newest bedroom community."

Full Story: Sleeping in Center City
Source: The Philadelphia Inquirer, June 8, 2005
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One of the keys to regional and local prosperity is the ability to attract and retain high-skilled people. ... Many people can, and do, choose where they want to live based on factors beyond their ability to make a living.
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