[Vision2020] Real Economic Value

[B. J. Swanson]

The idea of high tech jobs being a good fit and economic driver for Moscow
is based on the assets and culture we already have to attract and support
them.  Assets being the University of Idaho, research dollars, quality of
life, arts community, etc.  The high tech jobs bring in new money to support
several other jobs within the community and raise the overall standard of
living.  Those high paying jobs will support housing, retail and overall
good of the community.  Very similar to the economic models of Dr. Richard
Florida.

We are not a Seattle, San Francisco or Washington DC, won¹t be in the next
100 years and it sounds like we don¹t want to be.  Comparing Moscow with
12,000 permanent residents with cities of over 1 million doesn¹t work.  We
have limited resources.  We are not a blue collar town and don¹t have an
industrial base to build from. But we are very fortunate to have two major
universities nearby and should capitalize on what they have to offer.

At the MCA Smart Growth Forum on Monday night, Robin Woods and David
Alexander explained why their companies are in Moscow instead of Seattle or
San Francisco.  Sue Hovey and Bev Bafus just said the same thing.  It¹s
quality of life.  Quality of life is not an interstate, a Wal-Mart or a
strip-mine.  It is a sense of community, the arts, walk ability, Farmers
Market, parks, open spaces, safety, good schools, Paradise Path/Latah Trail,
etc.  
 
Thanks to the current City Council and Mayor, we have a new fiber optic loop
funded by a grant, the first new building in Alturas Technology Park Phase
II and a proposed Urban Renewal District between the Downtown and the
University.  These are certainly not examples of ³No-Growth² and
³Anti-Business² that the conservative candidates keep touting.  They are
also examples of a positive attitude for the future instead of dwelling in
the past. 

B. J. Swanson

³The affluence of the few presupposes the indigence of the many." Adam Smith
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