Peabody and Attleboro are now Gateway Cities, thus giving them access to that pool of grant money the state had set aside for members of the club.
Rather than gaining that status through legislative efforts (something the local state reps for Attleboro tried repeatedly over the past few years), this came via the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development which I guess has been reviewing the data to see who is in and out of the club. It appears that they are reviewing the information in five year chunks rather than momentary snapshots, so if a city suddenly trips over the requirements they don't instantly change status without a long look at whether or not the trend is permanent.
Basically, that means that if, say, the workers of a local business have a lotto pool that pulls down the big bucks (and nobody tries to claim it's all theirs) thus raising a town's median* income over the state average*, the city's status doesn't change.
So I can see the reason for the review, I wish the timetable was a bit more transparent, though. When will the review happen again? Can cities lose Gateway status if the trends show they are moving on up? That could play havoc with budgeting processes - you know that there is a Gateway-only matching grant that means you could get a $100k project done for half that, so you budget accordingly only to find out, whoops, you are no longer able to get that matching 50k and are now on the hook for the entire cost of the project if you still want it done.
Anyways, what does Peabody and Attleboro joining the club mean? First off, more competition for funds. Second, less grant money to go around. As I don't think the Gateway-only grants have come close to running out of cash, I don't think this will impact Salem too much. I wonder if there is any precedent for Gateway cities working together on projects? Because with Peabody joining the club, we now have a cluster of three Gateway cities (Salem, Lynn, and Peabody) that could work together. Does Spring Pond need anything?
_______
* WAIT! The ghost of my high school math teacher, Mr. Brown, just appeared to me to threaten a lifetime of hauntings if I didn't make the differences between median and average clear. Median is literally the number in the middle, while average is the arithmetic mean (add them all up, divide by number of numbers added). So if you have a town of 11 people (Citizens A through K) who earn A ($15), B ($18), C ($30), D ($41), E ($42), F ($50), G ($50), H ($68), I ($70), J ($87), and K ($100) you have a town whose average income is $51.9 but whose median income is $50. If the state average is $55, that means you still have 64% (7/11) of the town population earning below it.
Looking at my lotto example, if B, C, and E win the lotto for $20 each, the median income remains $50 [A ($15), B ($38), D ($41), C ($50), F ($50), G ($50), E ($62), H ($68), I ($70), J ($87), and K ($100)] while the average income jumps to $57.4. Likewise if I, J, and K won that lotto - there would be more money in town, sure, but the median income would not change. You would need to have E, F, and G win the lotto to get the median to shift. An extra 20 bucks each would push the median to $68 (F and G would leapfrog H who would become the new middleman) for that year. Of course, next year the median would drop again unless this was an extraordinarily lucky town. Maybe that's the secret plan behind the Danvers slots parlor?
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Insert Ice Pun Here
Managed to get some shots of the ice sculptures yesterday while out running pre-storm errands.
The first one is my favorite seeing as how last year there was a Great Head Robbery.
The first one is my favorite seeing as how last year there was a Great Head Robbery.
Friday, February 15, 2013
Gateway Salem
Recently, there has been a lot of confusion
and worry over Salem’s status as a “Gateway City” and what that means to
the Bridge Street Neck area now that repairs are almost done. In
preparation for a community meeting on the subject, I tapped into my
librarian nature and did some research. Rather than just let it drift
away, I figured I’d write it down to share with my community. I originally posted this document here and was surprised by the amount of positive feedback it received as it was passed around the Halls o'Facebook. So I figured I'd put a revised version up here for more ease of viewing.
First, what the heck is a Gateway City? Basically, it’s a city that’s seen better days. Each Gateway City was once more than it currently is, usually through no fault of its own. Think about those mill towns that became ghost towns when industry dried up, those urban centers that emptied out into the suburbs. This isn’t a fault of the cities themselves, just a reflection of the changing nature of work in America. Factory and industrial jobs gave way to skill and knowledge based jobs. Transportation improved and cars became more affordable so people could drive into work.
In 2007, there was a report by the Brookings Institution and the Massachusetts Institute for a New Commonwealth called Reconnecting Massachusetts Gateway Cities: Lessons Learned and an Agenda for Renewal. This report focused on 11 cities (of which Salem was not one) who had a legacy of economic success but had fallen on hard times. The report found that the Gateways were losing out to the Greater Boston area big time. For example, while Greater Boston grew jobs by 51% from 1970-2005, the 11 Gateways actually lost 3% of their job base. The Gateways also lagged behind when it came to college graduates, high tech firms, and average income. The report pointed out that if funding kept going to the Boston area, where admittedly 40% of the state lived and 50% of the jobs were, the Gateways would continue to lag behind. With lower incomes and increased poverty rates, they simply could not step forward to reclaim their past prosperity on their own – the revenue base was just not there.
Change was clearly needed. So the 11 initial Gateways got together and formed The Gateway Cities Compact For Community and Economic Development. The theory was that by working together the cities could get the legislative muscle they needed to ensure that their communities were not passed over. The cities could also share their experiences, what worked and what didn’t, when it came to navigating the modern economic climate.
The compact proved to be a popular idea, so popular that the legislature got involved and decided to create an official state designation for Gateway Cities in 2009. Money was set aside for use by the Gateways in the form of grants and incentives and so on. In 2010, the legislature expanded the definition of what is and isn’t a Gateway City. So any municipality with 35,000-250,000 residents, below average household income, and below average educational attainment became a Gateway city. Salem and 12 other cities joined the first 11 as Massachusetts’ Gateway Cities.
Salem did not ask for Gateway status - we just fall within the definition set by the legislature. It’s interesting to note that there has been a push by other communities to further expand the definition of what is a Gateway City. Attleboro, for example, really wanted to join the club in 2012, but a legislative effort to broaden the definition was vetoed by the Governor.
Salem is a bit of a unique case compared to other Gateway Cities – our heyday was one of trade and shipping, not giant brick smokestacks and heavy industry (though we had our fair share). We’re close to the Boston area, so all those jobs the report said fled to the capital are just a commuter rail ride away for us. We have a booming tourist trade and a vibrant downtown. Still, we fit the definition:
Population: Salem’s growth peaked in 1910 with 43,697 residents, an increase of 21.5% from the previous census. We held close to that number for thirty years or so, but by the time we hit the 1960s, the population stagnated. It’s only in the 21st century that we’ve started to see consistent growth again, climbing back up 41,340 residents (which is where we were in the ‘40s) in 2010. The population requirement is what keeps Danvers out of the Gateway club as they only have 26,493 residents.
Per capita income: Our per capita income ($30,949) is below the state average ($33,966), but we’re above the national average of $27,334. Still, we’re rolling in it compared to Lawrence ($16,557), Springfield ($17,962), and Chelsea ($18,630). Beverly comes in at $36,013 per capita, so they’re out.
Educational attainment: This metric is the percentage of the population who have at least a Bachelor’s degree. We’re right on the cusp of this one. The state average is 39.1% and we’re just under it at 38.3%. It’s a tough crowd as we New Englanders tend to be wicked smaht (the national average is 28.5%).
I admit I’m at a loss as to why Peabody doesn’t qualify as a Gateway – they fit the population requirement (51,251), are below MA average per capita income ($31,505), and below average educational attainment (30.7%). I guess the whole “places that used to be awesome and now not so much” thing rules them out – you heard it here first, folks, the state ruled that Peabody was never awesome.
Anyways, you can see how Salem technically fits the definition of a Gateway city. Given some of the hardships suffered by other Gateways – crippling poverty, urban blight, crime – we’re actually set up for the best of both worlds: all of the advantages of being a Gateway with few of the drawbacks.
Being a Gateway City does not obligate Salem to do anything. All it does is let us cut in line when it comes to state money. Remember how that report pointed out that huge chunk of the state’s population and jobs were in the Boston area? Combine that with the fact that Boston becomes a second home to so many legislators, and it’s pretty easy to see how it can end up with the lion’s share of state funds, even though other communities may need them just as much.
Let’s torture an analogy here. Think of being a Gateway City kind of like being good friends the bouncer at a popular club. Sure, you may not be as well dressed or wealthy as some of the other people who want in, but you won’t be waiting in line as long as they do. Your pal will waive you to the front, give you the quick once over to make sure you meet the dress code, and then waive you in. Meanwhile, Marblehead has to pop its collar against the cold night air.
Okay, so you’re in the club, time to limber up and start meeting some beautiful and engaging, uh, grants. Now there were no strings attached to you getting into the club so easily. Your bartender pal will not be calling you up at 3am asking for you to let his five buddies crash at your place for the weekend. This is not the case with grants. You’ll have to spend some time getting to know each one, they’re all different. The really attractive grant, with the long funding scheme and killer smile, might have really exacting requirements. You’ll still have to go through the steps to impress the grant and win it over. Maybe you talk a good game or have really good moves on the dance floor, who knows. While you’re doing that, however, you’re also learning about what the grant wants from you. Maybe the grant has those five buddies looking for a place to crash and the only way for you to get with it is to hand over the keys to your apartment. Other grants could be less demanding – all you need to do is chat them up a bit. Some may have even seen that you know the bouncer and, for whatever reason, that excites them and they pretty much throw themselves at you.
By the time you leave the club, the only obligations that have been placed on you are those that you agreed to in order to get with a particular grant. It’s probably not a good idea to hit up the bar too much, as who knows what sort of grant you may wake up to in the morning. Some grants can be pretty demanding and you don’t want to be saddled with them for long, no matter how nice the funding was. Others, who knows, you may want to spend more time with them, take them out just the two of you…
And with the confluence of soft saxophone music and grant proposals, here ends the analogy.
For Salem, the easiest way to stop being a Gateway City is to not need the leg up anymore. To do that, we just need raise our per capita income by $3,020 and convince 331 college graduates to move to town. We could also try shipping out 7,000 residents or importing another 210,000, but somehow I don’t think that’s in the cards.
One of the good things about the Gateway City program as the legislature set it is that it is designed to get cities to move on up and out of the program. Part of me wonders if Salem was included as a Gateway simply because we are an easy win – a few more jobs, a few more college graduates, and we no longer qualify for Gateway City status. Everybody gets high fives!
Although I’m sure that some would like to keep the benefits of being a Gateway City if we move beyond the definition set for it (remember that the original compact was an opt-in thing), I’m of the opinion that if we no longer need the help, we should step aside for the next community that does. I know that means essentially leaving money on the table, but if we can afford to fund our own prosperity, we probably should. Bootstraps and all that.
But until that day comes, we should use the advantages being a Gateway status gives us for all they’re worth. More education funding you say? Yes, please. Clean up Canal Street? Well, I had my heart broken by Bridge, but if you don’t hurt me the way Bridge Street did, then maybe… Again, the only dangers here are of our own making - if we don’t pay attention to the terms of the grants and keep an eye out for the strings attached to the money we receive, we can end up going down paths we’d rather avoid.
As
of 2013, Salem has received $1,783,569 in state investment through the
Gateway Cities program. About half of that money, $809,396, has gone to
local businesses - US Biological Corporation and GT Crystal Systems. The
first one makes biochemicals, antibodies, biological testing kits and
so on, while the second one makes sapphires. I’m sure helping cure
diseases and studying the mystery of life is cool and all, but that
doesn’t hold a candle to making sapphires. “What did you do today?” “Oh, not much. I just made a bunch of sapphires.” “Are you a wizard?”
Oh man, if I made sapphires for a living, I’d be banned from most Salem stores in about a week for trying to pay for things with little bags of sapphires. I would become a cautionary tale told to disbelieving tourists about the man who starved to death despite wearing nothing but gemstones.
As for the other half of the money, it’s mostly gone to the kids. Furlong Park and Splaine Park received a combined $770,946 to fund improvements and a summer education program/camp got $128,227. Another $75,000 went to the Bridge Street Neck Revitalization plan.
I sourced most of my numbers from the 2010 Census. You can go to the Census Bureau’s FactFinder to look up more data for yourself. You can also cheat a bit by going to Wikipedia to look at the List of Massachusetts Towns by Per Capita Income and Massachusetts Gateway Cities. For more background on Gateways, you can look at the original report (or save your eyes by reading the executive summary), view the signed compact of the original 11 Gateways, and check out the section of the General Laws where ‘Gateway municipality’ is defined (scroll down).
There was a series of editorials in the Boston Globe in 2010 focusing on the Gateway Cities. The first is here. Second. Third. Fourth. Fifth.
Quotes from state reps about Attleboro not getting Gateway City status can be found here. More reaction to the veto here.
In February of 2013, there was a presentation by MassINC. You can read about it here and I think the entire meeting will be up on Salem Access Television at some point.
Finally, the whole Bridge Street Neck Revitalization Plan, which was a report composed in 2009 and was (I think) the first use of Gateway grant money in Salem, has been up on the City of Salem’s website for years. You can look at the plans for other Gateways commissioned around the same time here, plus a final report on the project. It should be noted that pretty much everything proposed in the revitalization plans are hypotheticals and detail some suggestions of what could be done, not recommendations or statements of what will be done.
Thanks for reading. If you have any feedback, please feel free to drop me a line!
Salem is a Gateway City
First, what the heck is a Gateway City? Basically, it’s a city that’s seen better days. Each Gateway City was once more than it currently is, usually through no fault of its own. Think about those mill towns that became ghost towns when industry dried up, those urban centers that emptied out into the suburbs. This isn’t a fault of the cities themselves, just a reflection of the changing nature of work in America. Factory and industrial jobs gave way to skill and knowledge based jobs. Transportation improved and cars became more affordable so people could drive into work.
In 2007, there was a report by the Brookings Institution and the Massachusetts Institute for a New Commonwealth called Reconnecting Massachusetts Gateway Cities: Lessons Learned and an Agenda for Renewal. This report focused on 11 cities (of which Salem was not one) who had a legacy of economic success but had fallen on hard times. The report found that the Gateways were losing out to the Greater Boston area big time. For example, while Greater Boston grew jobs by 51% from 1970-2005, the 11 Gateways actually lost 3% of their job base. The Gateways also lagged behind when it came to college graduates, high tech firms, and average income. The report pointed out that if funding kept going to the Boston area, where admittedly 40% of the state lived and 50% of the jobs were, the Gateways would continue to lag behind. With lower incomes and increased poverty rates, they simply could not step forward to reclaim their past prosperity on their own – the revenue base was just not there.
Change was clearly needed. So the 11 initial Gateways got together and formed The Gateway Cities Compact For Community and Economic Development. The theory was that by working together the cities could get the legislative muscle they needed to ensure that their communities were not passed over. The cities could also share their experiences, what worked and what didn’t, when it came to navigating the modern economic climate.
The compact proved to be a popular idea, so popular that the legislature got involved and decided to create an official state designation for Gateway Cities in 2009. Money was set aside for use by the Gateways in the form of grants and incentives and so on. In 2010, the legislature expanded the definition of what is and isn’t a Gateway City. So any municipality with 35,000-250,000 residents, below average household income, and below average educational attainment became a Gateway city. Salem and 12 other cities joined the first 11 as Massachusetts’ Gateway Cities.
Salem did not ask for Gateway status - we just fall within the definition set by the legislature. It’s interesting to note that there has been a push by other communities to further expand the definition of what is a Gateway City. Attleboro, for example, really wanted to join the club in 2012, but a legislative effort to broaden the definition was vetoed by the Governor.
Not Your Average Gateway
Salem is a bit of a unique case compared to other Gateway Cities – our heyday was one of trade and shipping, not giant brick smokestacks and heavy industry (though we had our fair share). We’re close to the Boston area, so all those jobs the report said fled to the capital are just a commuter rail ride away for us. We have a booming tourist trade and a vibrant downtown. Still, we fit the definition:
Population: Salem’s growth peaked in 1910 with 43,697 residents, an increase of 21.5% from the previous census. We held close to that number for thirty years or so, but by the time we hit the 1960s, the population stagnated. It’s only in the 21st century that we’ve started to see consistent growth again, climbing back up 41,340 residents (which is where we were in the ‘40s) in 2010. The population requirement is what keeps Danvers out of the Gateway club as they only have 26,493 residents.
Per capita income: Our per capita income ($30,949) is below the state average ($33,966), but we’re above the national average of $27,334. Still, we’re rolling in it compared to Lawrence ($16,557), Springfield ($17,962), and Chelsea ($18,630). Beverly comes in at $36,013 per capita, so they’re out.
Educational attainment: This metric is the percentage of the population who have at least a Bachelor’s degree. We’re right on the cusp of this one. The state average is 39.1% and we’re just under it at 38.3%. It’s a tough crowd as we New Englanders tend to be wicked smaht (the national average is 28.5%).
I admit I’m at a loss as to why Peabody doesn’t qualify as a Gateway – they fit the population requirement (51,251), are below MA average per capita income ($31,505), and below average educational attainment (30.7%). I guess the whole “places that used to be awesome and now not so much” thing rules them out – you heard it here first, folks, the state ruled that Peabody was never awesome.
Anyways, you can see how Salem technically fits the definition of a Gateway city. Given some of the hardships suffered by other Gateways – crippling poverty, urban blight, crime – we’re actually set up for the best of both worlds: all of the advantages of being a Gateway with few of the drawbacks.
What are the Gateway Advantages?
Being a Gateway City does not obligate Salem to do anything. All it does is let us cut in line when it comes to state money. Remember how that report pointed out that huge chunk of the state’s population and jobs were in the Boston area? Combine that with the fact that Boston becomes a second home to so many legislators, and it’s pretty easy to see how it can end up with the lion’s share of state funds, even though other communities may need them just as much.
Let’s torture an analogy here. Think of being a Gateway City kind of like being good friends the bouncer at a popular club. Sure, you may not be as well dressed or wealthy as some of the other people who want in, but you won’t be waiting in line as long as they do. Your pal will waive you to the front, give you the quick once over to make sure you meet the dress code, and then waive you in. Meanwhile, Marblehead has to pop its collar against the cold night air.
Okay, so you’re in the club, time to limber up and start meeting some beautiful and engaging, uh, grants. Now there were no strings attached to you getting into the club so easily. Your bartender pal will not be calling you up at 3am asking for you to let his five buddies crash at your place for the weekend. This is not the case with grants. You’ll have to spend some time getting to know each one, they’re all different. The really attractive grant, with the long funding scheme and killer smile, might have really exacting requirements. You’ll still have to go through the steps to impress the grant and win it over. Maybe you talk a good game or have really good moves on the dance floor, who knows. While you’re doing that, however, you’re also learning about what the grant wants from you. Maybe the grant has those five buddies looking for a place to crash and the only way for you to get with it is to hand over the keys to your apartment. Other grants could be less demanding – all you need to do is chat them up a bit. Some may have even seen that you know the bouncer and, for whatever reason, that excites them and they pretty much throw themselves at you.
By the time you leave the club, the only obligations that have been placed on you are those that you agreed to in order to get with a particular grant. It’s probably not a good idea to hit up the bar too much, as who knows what sort of grant you may wake up to in the morning. Some grants can be pretty demanding and you don’t want to be saddled with them for long, no matter how nice the funding was. Others, who knows, you may want to spend more time with them, take them out just the two of you…
And with the confluence of soft saxophone music and grant proposals, here ends the analogy.
Don’t Want to be a Gateway?
For Salem, the easiest way to stop being a Gateway City is to not need the leg up anymore. To do that, we just need raise our per capita income by $3,020 and convince 331 college graduates to move to town. We could also try shipping out 7,000 residents or importing another 210,000, but somehow I don’t think that’s in the cards.
One of the good things about the Gateway City program as the legislature set it is that it is designed to get cities to move on up and out of the program. Part of me wonders if Salem was included as a Gateway simply because we are an easy win – a few more jobs, a few more college graduates, and we no longer qualify for Gateway City status. Everybody gets high fives!
Although I’m sure that some would like to keep the benefits of being a Gateway City if we move beyond the definition set for it (remember that the original compact was an opt-in thing), I’m of the opinion that if we no longer need the help, we should step aside for the next community that does. I know that means essentially leaving money on the table, but if we can afford to fund our own prosperity, we probably should. Bootstraps and all that.
But until that day comes, we should use the advantages being a Gateway status gives us for all they’re worth. More education funding you say? Yes, please. Clean up Canal Street? Well, I had my heart broken by Bridge, but if you don’t hurt me the way Bridge Street did, then maybe… Again, the only dangers here are of our own making - if we don’t pay attention to the terms of the grants and keep an eye out for the strings attached to the money we receive, we can end up going down paths we’d rather avoid.
Gateway 2013
Oh man, if I made sapphires for a living, I’d be banned from most Salem stores in about a week for trying to pay for things with little bags of sapphires. I would become a cautionary tale told to disbelieving tourists about the man who starved to death despite wearing nothing but gemstones.
As for the other half of the money, it’s mostly gone to the kids. Furlong Park and Splaine Park received a combined $770,946 to fund improvements and a summer education program/camp got $128,227. Another $75,000 went to the Bridge Street Neck Revitalization plan.
Further Reading
There was a series of editorials in the Boston Globe in 2010 focusing on the Gateway Cities. The first is here. Second. Third. Fourth. Fifth.
Quotes from state reps about Attleboro not getting Gateway City status can be found here. More reaction to the veto here.
In February of 2013, there was a presentation by MassINC. You can read about it here and I think the entire meeting will be up on Salem Access Television at some point.
Finally, the whole Bridge Street Neck Revitalization Plan, which was a report composed in 2009 and was (I think) the first use of Gateway grant money in Salem, has been up on the City of Salem’s website for years. You can look at the plans for other Gateways commissioned around the same time here, plus a final report on the project. It should be noted that pretty much everything proposed in the revitalization plans are hypotheticals and detail some suggestions of what could be done, not recommendations or statements of what will be done.
Thanks for reading. If you have any feedback, please feel free to drop me a line!
New Blog
I always get a big case of brain freeze when it comes to picking names for web-based anythings. Hopefully More Weight won't be misconstrued as some sort of bacchanalian overeating blog.
The name comes, of course, from Giles Corey's last words as he was pressed (heh) to plead his guilt or innocence during the Salem Witch Trials. I walk by the site of his death every day on my way to the train and have always been fascinated by the guy. I mean, he was a huge jerk that beat one of his own farm workers to death, but still... that last line.
Dude was old school.
I've often daydreamed about using some imaginary lottery winnings to open a bookstore in Salem (the only way to make a million in indie bookstores nowadays is to start with ten million) called The Corey Press. While that last Powerball match continues to elude me, I can at least pass the time here.
The name comes, of course, from Giles Corey's last words as he was pressed (heh) to plead his guilt or innocence during the Salem Witch Trials. I walk by the site of his death every day on my way to the train and have always been fascinated by the guy. I mean, he was a huge jerk that beat one of his own farm workers to death, but still... that last line.
Dude was old school.
I've often daydreamed about using some imaginary lottery winnings to open a bookstore in Salem (the only way to make a million in indie bookstores nowadays is to start with ten million) called The Corey Press. While that last Powerball match continues to elude me, I can at least pass the time here.
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