The Creative Class

In the 90’s, cities competed for factories, corporate offices, distribution centres and the like with a number of incentives, including tax breaks, land deals and the construction of big civic projects like arenas, convention centres, and strangely, aquariums. While some cities were able to lure the corporations they sought, many also saw that they were losing skilled workers.

Bruce Katz, director of the Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy at the Brookings Institution in Washington said in USA Today “We built the stadiums. We built the hotels. We built the convention center. We still lost people. And the 90’s were a phenomenal decade. There’s an implicit recognition that the big-ticket items didn’t quite do the trick.”

What does this mean? Richard Florida, a professor of Economic Development at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, has a theory. And many of North America’s mid-level cities are paying attention.

What is the Creative Class?

In his book, The Rise of the Creative Class: And How it's Transforming Work, Leisure, Community, and Everyday Life, Florida makes a case for cities reaching out to this creative class to spark the next wave of economic growth.

To understand the creative class means setting aside the traditional definition of “creativity”. To Florida, the creative class is not just artists, performers, musicians and the like, but anyone who uses creativity at work. His definition also encompasses scientists, engineers, programmers, inventors and others who use their creativity to drive innovation. To go one step further, Florida believes everyone can be a part of the creative class, if they are given the chance. The creative class is not so much a division of society, but an understanding that creativity will be the key driver for new economic growth.

Why are the Creative Class important?

When Pittsburgh, Detroit and other urban manufacturing centres flourished in the past century, it was because of the factories that brought in an influx of unskilled labour. Workers from across the county moved to these centres for work. With the knowledge-based economy taking over as the driving force in economic growth, the urgent need for unskilled labour has been replaced by a need for educated, highly-skilled professionals.

But these young professionals, the creative class, are leaving yesterday’s manufacturing centres to relocate to new economic centres like Austin and Seattle, which offer not only desirable job opportunities, but a culture with a young, hip and edgy feel.

What makes a city attractive to the creative class? The three T’s: technology, talent and tolerance.
• Techology - Tech-saavy professionals prefer cities that place a similar importance on integrating technology into life. Because of their career directions in the knowledge-based economy, a high-tech industry, whether nascent or fully-developed is also attractive.
• Talent - The creative class are seeking places where their talents will be welcome and desirable, and where there are other similarly talented professionals.
• Tolerance - One key indicator of tolerance is the acceptance and proliferation of gay and bohemian communities. While the young professionals may not be part of these groups, they are encouraged by the greater community’s tolerance of different lifestyles, whether it be avant-garde performance artist or a young couple having children without getting married.

One other important characteristic of the creative class is their awareness that they will not spend their entire career working for one company, as their parents may have. They expect to shift jobs several times, but they don’t want to be moving constantly. Florida’s creative class are more likely to be loyal to a location that offers them cultural and recreational enrichment as well as job opportunities. Therein lies the key to the creative class: what can you do to attract them, and how do you keep them?

What are cities doing?

While major cities like New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Miami will always have their lures, it is the next echelon of cities who need to be creative in their efforts to attract the professionals that are will create new economic growth. Cities like Memphis, Tampa Bay and countless others are working on plans to attract and retain their share of the creative class.

Major infrastructure projects such as sports arenas were one of the booms of the 1990’s. These arenas can attract more than 1 million patrons over the course of busy year, while enriching nearby businesses. However, these arenas came with a high cost, with price tags in cities with major league sports teams often exceeding US$200-300 million plus the costs of long-term financing. In some of the worst cases, cities expended so much on the construction of these projects that the other budget priorities such as schools suffered.

Not every city can indulge in these big ticket items, but it may be that smaller alternatives are exactly what will attract young professional. Many cities are turning to arts, culture and movie festivals of all stripes, which can attract more than 1 million visitors over the course of year at a fraction of the cost. Support for smaller community initiatives and projects is also seen as attractive, creating a wide array for affordable events that encourage participation at multiple levels.

Urban renewal and smart growth policies also play a role in attracting young professionals. Run-down historical neighbourhoods are particularly hot, providing the dual benefits of attractive architecture and low property values. In short order, these former slums can be transformed into vibrant communities.

Whether it’s opening up the “old boy’s clubs” to young professionals, revitalizing a downtown core or changing attitudes, these efforts all work towards building better communities and a stronger, more economically prosperous economy.

How can I learn more?

To learn more about Richard Florida and the Rise of the Creative Class, visit the official website at www.creativeclass.org, or look for the Rise of the Creative Class in bookstores or on-line.