Only 7 short years ago, planners in the Phoenix/Tuscon area were envisioning a region of 10 million people. Today they're scaling back the predictions, but still have hope for a recovery.
Tony Davis of the Arizona Daily Star calls it the "lost decade"; the folks he interviewed expect that the downturn will last 5-10 years and then result in a modest recovery in the housing market. Davis talks with Robert Lang, a sociology professor at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas:
"Lang was a bit more optimistic, saying that while the region could endure a "lost decade," it may be more like a lost half-decade if now-depressed housing prices in Tucson and Phoenix begin to make the region seem like a bargain to people living elsewhere.
"Phoenix boomed and busted, but that left the region a real bargain compared to Southern California," said Lang..."
FULL STORY: Downturn May Slow Predicted Boom in Prescott/Phoenix/Tucson Corridor
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