News
Charleston and Richland Counties Strongest Concentration of COOL
February 19, 2009
The knowledge economy must lead S.C. economic growth
Staff Report
Published Feb. 18, 2009
And while President Obama has signed the economic stimulus package, that?s not what will bring the country out of recession, Yandle said during the Municipal Association of South Carolina?s annual Hometown, SC Legislative Action Day.
?It is brains that will make the difference for us,? he said. ?States that rank highest in the knowledge economy suffer the lowest unemployment. We are in a brains race and the states around us are outrunning us.?
And the key to growing this is figuring out the ?cool? factor, or what attracts the college educated, single and young, 25-to-39-year-old people, he said.
?They are the most mobile people. Where they go will determine the future of our economy,? Yandle said.
He said this sector of people are attracted to areas that have a large population of young professionals and that they are repelled by state taxes, are not sensitive to high or low income areas and are attracted to ?cool? locations.
?If you?re not cool you?re not going to get them,? he said. ?If you?re going to invest, it may be better to invest in that cool thing instead of investing in a building and hoping a business will come.?
There are a couple of hopeful signs that the economy in the state and country may be bottoming out. Yandle said the manufacturing sector saw growth in January and the service sector, which includes the knowledge economy, has seen growth the last three months.
The event, which focuses on legislative policy challenges and conversation about solutions with cities and towns officials, wraps up tonight with an evening reception.