In the United States, many knowledge-based workers are leaving large coastal urban areas due to quality-of-life issues such as long commute times, high costs of living and housing unaffordability, writes the engineering consultancy firm Buro Happold in an article for the World Economic Forum. As a result, innovation in small- and medium-sized cities is accelerating.
According to the article, smaller cities offer affordable housing, as well as bike trails and urban parks that enhance quality of life. They increasingly host innovative new businesses and industries, many working in the green economy. The article cites the example of Detroit, which was recently named the number one emerging startup ecosystem globally.
“Smaller-scale cities are increasingly the testbeds for new civic tech and advanced urban systems, in part because they deploy prototypes quickly and effectively, which may be more difficult to achieve in many big cities,” explain the authors. New innovation districts are even being developed in small cities such as Wilmington in North Carolina.
To keep growing and innovating, concludes the article, small cities need to focus their efforts on “attracting green economy jobs and businesses, reviving local manufacturing and tailoring development to the local identity”.
