A Competitive Vision For The Regional City Of Louisville

In early 2003, the City of Louisville, KY and Jefferson County will officially merge to form the 16th largest city in the country. It will be the first major city-county consolidation since 1970. This report examines the key trends facing the new Regional City of Louisville and finds that the city faces two major challenges that are eroding its strengths. First, it has a workforce that is limited in size and skills that will hamper the city's ability to mature its low-wage, service economy to a higher-wage one. Second, the region is growing in a decentralized and divided way that will ultimately harm the area's quality of life and hinder low-income households' access to opportunities. The report mounts a call to action to Louisville's strong civic, community, and political community to use the moment of merger to think boldly and pursue a competitive agenda that will help the city emerge as a truly top-tier American city.