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Texas cities turn in good performances
Flags fly next to a Texas road sign in Wimberley, Texas.
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Steve Chiotakis: A report out this week by a think-tank shows Texas towns make up four of the five best-performing cities in America. Marketplace's Steve Henn reports Texas has done so well, in part because it missed the last boom.
For the past decade economists at the Milken Institute have been ranking America's cities based on their ability to create and sustain good jobs. But never before has one state swept four of the five top spots.
Ross DeVol: It's a remarkable performance. We've never had one state dominating the list that way.
Ross DeVol is director of regional economics at the Milken Institute. He says many Texas cities benefited from high-energy prices. And compared to other states, Texas largely missed the real-estate bubble.
DeVol: Texas also has a very favorable business climate.
But back in 2005, three Florida cities rode the real-estate boom to the top of this list. Before that it was Silicon Valley's turn to shine. But this year both states' cities have dropped precipitously.
George Erickcek: I would say these surveys are somewhat dangerous.
George Erickcek is an economist at the Upjohn Institute. He says instead of chasing the last boom, cities are better off trying to attract and retain a talented, innovative workforce.
In Washington, I'm Steve Henn for Marketplace.
This won't surprise Texans. Part of our tradition lies in our history and constitution. Since one rogue Republican got way too controlling we rewrote the constitution and chose Democrats. Though a Texas Democrat is one that likes to write legislation to keep government from screwing up. We only started going GOP when Democrat became synonymous with liberals and the classic-liberal camp move with the right wingers.
But the land is spread out here and we've always been able to spread out with our business and houses instead of focusing on limited areas. I'd be interested in knowing more about why other cities in the nation can't do that.
