Myths of Population Decline and Fiscal Stress in American Cities

Growing cities have fiscal stress, too at Pacific Standard magazine.

Theme: Mesofacts and municipal finance.

Subject Article: "Fiscal Stress in the Postindustrial City."

Other Links: 1. "Reinventing Older Communities: Bridging Growth & Opportunity."
2. "Gentrification Is in the Eye of the Beholder."
3. "Could the U.S. Become a Third-World Country?"

Postscript: Public safety and pension costs were cited as the two main components of fiscal stress. The same person who made this observation also used Vallejo's (California) bankruptcy as an example of how to play Moneyball with rising fiscal costs. Vallejo experienced decades of robust population growth leading up to the fiscal stress. The people in power couldn't blame a shrinking city. I think demographic decline has become a red herring for fiscal stress in Rust Belt cities. Brain drain makes a nice scapegoat in places where nonprofits that can't be taxed gobble up prime urban real estate.