04.02.2008 - Columbus Business First Reports on 2nd Annual Benchmarking Central Ohio Report

Report: Columbus's growth, progress has ups, downs
Wednesday, February 2, 2008


A report that measures Columbus against 15 other U.S. metropolitan areas puts the city in dozens of comparative economic, demographic and cultural rankings. What the numbers mean for the city isn't as easy to pinpoint.

The Columbus Partnership on Wednesday released its second annual Benchmarking Central Ohio report, which shows the city exhibits a range of economic and demographic characteristics found in slow- and fast-growing metros. For every strong ranking in transportation job growth, for instance, Columbus languishes at the bottom of the list in manufacturing employment. Despite its relatively youthful population, the city brings up the rear in number of arts establishments when compared to the other communities. And while the gap between top and bottom income groups remains smaller than most other cities, poverty and foreclosure levels in Central Ohio are hard to top.

In addition to Cleveland and Cincinnati, other cities used in the benchmarking report include Charlotte, N.C.; Chicago; Austin, Texas; and Nashville, Tenn. - many of them considered economic development rivals for Columbus.

"The data reveal a complex picture of the Columbus metro area," said Roberta Garber, executive director of report developer Community Research Partners. "We have characteristics of faster-growing areas in the South and West, as well as characteristics of the slow-growth cities of Cleveland and Cincinnati. We need to be aware of both."

While officials said data from last year and this year are too inconclusive to begin uncovering trends, Columbus made considerable leaps in some comparisons. The city's rental housing affordability, for example, fell to ninth on the list from second the year before. And its eco-friendly building presence jumped to sixth from 13th in 2007, the report found.

Among the study's other contrasting findings:

• Columbus placed ninth for population growth, and its residents were ranked fourth-youngest among the 16 cities.
• city ranked fourth for its share of Fortune 1,000 companies, but ranked last in its share of businesses with fewer than 20 employees.
• In an examination of residents' prosperity, Columbus ranked third best in owner housing affordability, but the city had the fourth-highest level of foreclosures.
• Columbus' share of uninsured adults was the third-lowest among the metro. But it also had the fourth-highest share of obese adults, a group that pose a significant - and costly -health risk.

The benchmarking report is available in a full version here and condensed version here. To download last year's benchmarking report, click here.

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