Youngstown residents have launched a campaign against the Department of Housing and Urban Development after losing out on grant money to help deal with the aftermath of the foreclosure crisis.
Local activists are circulating a petition protesting the region’s denial of the second round of Neighborhood Stabilization Funds–a program of the Stimulus Bill which provides funding for demolition, rehabilitation and landbanking efforts.
The denial came as a surprise after the Youngstown area was praised by the Brookings Institution for its application, which brought together city and suburban leaders.

-AS
Tweet

President Obama will visit this Ohio community on Friday.
Hear more about what Lorain is -and was- on this in-depth radio piece from WKSU news.
When Obama visited during the 2008 campaign, he spoke quite a bit about jobs and trade.
I imagine jobs and the economy will be on everyone’s mind there now as well.
-KG
Tweet

Take a look at this column, published in Buffalo’s weekly Artvoice.
It reviews a book, Hope and Despair in the American City by Gerald Grant (Harvard University Press 2009), which examines school desegregation through metropolitan-wide school reorganization.
The premise? This work “compares the sorry recent history of Syracuse, New York with the glad success of Raleigh, North Carolina. One town tried desegregation within the boundaries of the old city and failed, and is dying, while the other town regionalized schools, and has been growing by leaps and bounds,” writes reviewer Bruce Fisher. (Fisher is …

The Chicago Tribune is reporting that Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels has recommended the city of Gary merge with another political entity to ward off financial shortcomings.
The recommendation comes as a new state law will lower the allowable tax rates in the state, threatening the impoverished city’s revenues.

Which begs the question, what city, county or other political entity is going to voluntarily merge with Gary, Indiana?
When are midwestern states going to stop treating their cities as enemies?
This isn’t leadership, this is negligence.
-AS
Tweet

As strange as it sounds, it can happen, according to this recent story in the Pittsburgh City Paper.
“Even today, Cranberry retains some rugged rural terrain amidst the strip malls and drive-throughs. Cranberry may be a synonym for “suburban sprawl” for many, but local officials are trying to preserve those places — and environmentalists give them high marks for the effort.
Still, finding a connection with nature is a lot like my coyote encounter: If you blink, you may miss it,” the author writes.
What did the Pittsburgh-area suburb of Cranberry do? …

Transparency International, a global coalition against corruption, offers this interesting piece about the economic costs of corruption.

According to economist Sanjeev Gupta, national corruption lowers economic growth and per-capital income, despite the argument that a certain amount of corruption can “grease the wheels” of the economy by circumventing bureaucratic regulations.

“Corruption increases the cost of investment for entrepreneurs who need to devote their scarce time and resources to fulfilling government regulations and bribing officials,” Gupta writes. “This cost can be high for small and medium-sized enterprises.”

The organizers of Pittsburgh’s annual Bike Fest might have been happy about conditions in downtown yesterday. The streets were closed to local traffic starting late Wednesday, and will remain blocked until the G-20 summit closes later this evening. The majority of the Golden Triangle is still open to pedestrians and bicycles though, and if you’re able to ignore mounted police, state troopers in riot gear, SWAT cars, and helicopters, the streets feel like an organized bicycle cyclovia.
The following photos were taken throughout the day yesterday in downtown Pittsburgh. For good coverage of the …

The city of Pittsburgh can hardly wait for the G-20 summit to begin. Along with humidity, constant rain, and murky skies, the atmosphere is a mix of anticipation, dread, annoyance, and excitement.

In fear of the destruction that could occur between police and protesters, some businesses are boarding their windows and glass doors. Others have chosen to remain open. In the Strip District, a few shops, including restaurants and art galleries, have posted signs in the windows announcing, “Will be open for G-20.” Much of downtown, though, has chosen to board-up.

For the past few months, local officials, the media, and most anyone else with some kind of an audience locally, has been speaking out about

Dayne Walling, the former Rhodes Scholar, has done it. He won the special mayoral election in Flint with more than 60% of the vote.

I like this guy. He’s ambitious. He’s got his work cut out for him. Never underestimate the power of good leadership.
-AS

more about “Video: Flint’s New Mayor“, posted with vodpod
Tweet

I saw an interesting ad recently, previewing the Sundance Channel documentary Brick City.
The show will focus on Newark, New Jersey (a city that while not in the Rust Belt, has certainly had its share of problems), Mayor Cory Booker, and other city officials and residents, such as the chief of police, a gang member, and a youth counselor.
You can watch a number of clips from the show and read a bit about it on the web site.
We’ve written about Mayor Booker and his efforts to turn the city around on …