Phoenix still has a lot more growing to do
Pop a cork! Phoenix is the fifthlargest city in the nation. Again. Big deal, right? Maybe. News that Phoenix nudged out Philadelphia to reclaim fifth place comes with some bragging rights. We lost that spot in 2010, and regaining it feels like a hard-won victory after those terrible days of the recession.
We got our mojo back. Or to be more accurate: Better economic times have given people back their mobility.
Our climate, the state’s natural beauty, a relatively low cost of living and an openness to new ideas have long been magnets for growth. You won’t lose by betting on that to continue.
So it isn’t surprising to see Phoenix move up in the population rankings.
Not only is Phoenix the fastest-growing city in the country, but it is in Maricopa County, which had the highest annual population increase of any county in the nation, according to newly released Census Bureau figures.
But are we mature enough to understand that’s not such a big deal?
“I hope we are finally over” seeing population growth as a measure of success, says Grady Gammage, land-use lawyer and author of “The Future of the Suburban City: Lessons from Sustaining Phoenix.”
It’s not that big is bad. It’s just that big isn’t the only thing.
Today’s Phoenix shows signs of recognizing that. It’s as though the city used the economic lull to think about what matters.
The downtown is vibrant and welcoming. Increasing numbers of residents see it as their neighborhood, and increasing numbers of visitors enjoy a diversity of art, theater, restaurant, sports and convention events.
This week’s Phoenix Comicon is a big deal.
So is Arizona State University’s Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, which opened last fall. And the Phoenix Biomedical Campus, which includes the University of Arizona’s College of Medicine – Phoenix.
With an entrepreneurial tech scene and thousands of apartments planned, Phoenix has a definite urban vibe.
It’s attractive to Millennials and Baby Boomers, says R.J. Price of Downtown Phoenix Inc. Light rail, bike paths and shaded sidewalks make it hip, as well as pedestrian friendly.
Dan Klocke, executive director of Downtown Phoenix Partnership, says “quality of life” amenities are critical to measuring the success of a city.
Those amenities include a mix of old and new buildings that celebrate the past, the future and the diversity that makes a city exciting.
He says the city, the business community and neighborhoods are working together to make new developments complement historic ones. People are talking to each other about how to make this the city they want it to be.
Phoenix is more than just downtown, but metropolitan areas are defined by their urban core. The downtown “should be everybody’s front porch,” Klocke says.
That kind of identity is a far better — more mature — measure of success than just population growth.
Another important measure of success? Good-paying jobs in companies that are committed to expanding and hiring here.
Gammage puts that kind of economic development on his list, along with cutting-edge, high-tech activity and a wide range of housing options. He also sees success in whether people who grew up in the Valley stay, rather than seek their fortunes in Los Angeles or New York.
He says the idea that Phoenix is unsustainable is “wrong.” Arizona is a leader in water management and “we’re better positioned to deal with climate change . . . because we know how to deal with hot and dry.”
But there is one area that Gammage says is critical to long-term success where the entire state is failing.
“We have to fix K-12 education,” he says. “That is our Achilles’ heel.”
Our population growth is rebounding, but our schools remain far behind in funding after savage recession-era cuts that have not been restored.
That’s a very big deal. It’s a deficit that cannot be ignored by those who care about the ultimate success of our urban and rural areas.
Until we get that right, keep the cork in the bottle.