2007 Greater Baltimore State of the Region Report
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Greater Baltimore State of the Region Report GREATER BALTIMORE COMMITTEE One Region Regional business leaders creating a better tomorrow ... today. One Future Baltimore Metropolitan Council 2007 Greater Baltimore State of the Region Report Produced Jointly By: Greater Baltimore Committee Atwood “Woody” Collins III, Chair Donald C. Fry, President & CEO Baltimore Metropolitan Council The Honorable David R. Craig, Chair Larry Klimovitz, Executive Director 2007 TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Contents Introduction . 6. Education & Workforce . 38 Summary of Findings . 9. Transportation . 42 Demographics & Market Characteristics . 15 Quality of Life . 49 Population . 16 Cost of Living . 50 Market, Income and Area . 19 Health and Health Care . 51 Economy . 23 Arts, Culture and Recreation . 53 Employment . 24 Social Distress and Crime . 54 Employment Growth by Sector . 29 Air Quality and Climate . 56 Tourism and Conventions . 32 Government & Community . 59 Innovation and Productivity . 34 Commercial Real Estate . 35 ABOUT THE GREATER BALTIMORE COMMITTEE ABOUT THE BALTIMORE METROPOLITAN COUNCIL The Greater Baltimore Committee (GBC) is the The Baltimore Metropolitan Council (BMC) is an region’s business leadership organization. It develops organization of the elected executives of Baltimore public policies and serves as a catalyst for action and City and Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford initiatives to strengthen the region’s business climate. and Howard counties. It is committed to identify- The GBC also serves as an advocate for business ing regional interests and developing collaborative in government and civic venues. Its top strategic initiatives to improve the region’s quality of life and priorities for 2007-08 include developing a regional economic vitality. BMC provides technical support transportation system, building life sciences busi- to the Baltimore Regional Transportation Board, nesses in the region, strengthening minority-owned and is also engaged in economic and demographic businesses in the region, preparing for growth from research, computer mapping, air and water quality Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) and other programs, cooperative purchasing and rideshare economic development, teamwork between Baltimore coordination. and Washington, D.C. area business advocates, and legislative advocacy. Greater Baltimore State of the Region Report 2007 3 Introduction & Summary of Findings 2007 Introduction The Greater Baltimore State of the Region 2007 in this report, and identifies Greater Baltimore as report examines the relative health and economic Baltimore City, and the surrounding counties of Anne performance of our region as compared to a group Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford, Howard, and of metropolitan economies throughout the United Queen Anne’s. The terms metropolitan area and re- States. gion are used interchangeably throughout this report. This report is the latest edition of a decade of Since the purpose of this report is to provide a State of the Region reports starting in 1998 and resource for strengthening the business climate of updated in 2000, 2003, and 2005 and this most recent Greater Baltimore, data from the Greater Baltimore 2007 edition. This edition is a joint initiative between region and the Washington, D.C. region are mea- the Greater Baltimore Committee, the region’s sured separately in most cases. We recognize, how- premier business leadership organization, and the ever, that the two are also widely recognized as an Baltimore Metropolitan Council. economically powerful combined metropolitan statis- The project was launched in 1997 with counsel tical area that comprises one of the nation’s largest and input from the Johns Hopkins Institute for markets and we support business and government Policy Studies. This report offers baseline and teamwork to strengthen the business climate of the follow-up information on key measurements of the combined region. region’s economic health and business climate. The most up-to-date, nationally published data and Its purpose is to provide an objective look at our information sources covering metropolitan regions region’s competitive advantages and challenges as have been used in this report. The results provide a we work to develop regional strategies for success in context for framing key questions about our commu- the national and global economies. nity. How does Greater Baltimore compare to other The U.S. Bureau of the Census definition of the regions as a place to live, work, and operate a busi- Baltimore Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) is used ness? What does the data suggest about where we Metropolitan Areas of the 2007 State of the Region Report Seattle ! ! Minneapolis Portland ! Boston ! Cleveland ! ! Pittsburgh Denver Indianapolis Philadelphia ! ! ! ! Saint Louis ! ! Washington Baltimore Richmond ! ! Charlotte ! Raleigh Atlanta ! San Diego Dallas ! ! Austin ! Tampa ! 6 Introduction INTRODUCTION are and where we are going? Is Greater Baltimore The growth and development of the region has well positioned to participate fully and competitively come at a price though. Greater Baltimore has in the present and future economy? What do we become a more congested and costly place to live. need to do to improve our ability to compete in the The region now has one of the longest commuting global economy? times for all of the comparison metro areas. Home- ownership rates have increased from 71.6 percent A Decade of Progress in 1997 to 72.9 percent in 2006, but the median This report marks ten years since the first State of home price has more than doubled from $118,200 to the Region report was produced. There have been $279,900 over the same time period. In 1997, Greater numerous changes since the first report in 1998. Baltimore was one of the most inexpensive places to While the number of major categories has remained live with a cost of living below the national average. the same, the breadth, scope, and number of indica- Today, the region is among the more expensive tors have increased. Additionally, while most of the places to live with a cost of living nearly 18% above benchmark regions have remained the same, several the national average. have changed either due to the ability to update the These changes, both positive and negative indicators or because the definitions for metro areas represent opportunities and challenges as we work have changed. to shape the development of the region. Through Significant changes have also occurred within the regional cooperation and promoting the region as a region since 1998. Many of the suburban counties whole, the Greater Baltimore metro area will be able looked very different than now. Howard County to determine its future and compete both nationally has become one of the top places to live and richest and globally. counties in the nation and Anne Arundel has grown through the continued development of BWI Thur- Selecting Regions for Comparison good Marshall Airport and the defense contracting In 1997, to begin the research process 20 metropoli- and high technology businesses. Harford County tan regions, including Baltimore, were selected from has and will continue to grow due to Aberdeen across the country in order to compare a wider vari- Proving Ground. Carroll County has grown with its ety of factors that relate to the economy and quality increasing residential base. Baltimore County has of life. The metropolitan areas studied include some seen significant change in many of its communi- of the fastest growing, most dynamic regions in the ties including Towson, Owings Mills, Hunt Valley, nation, along with some older metropolitan areas White Marsh, and Middle River. Baltimore City has that are going through economic transition. experienced significant change in the growth and Metro areas studied in the 2007 State of the development of housing, businesses, and residents Region Report: now locating within its neighborhoods. For the first Atlanta, GA Philadelphia, PA time in decades, Baltimore City is growing and not Austin, TX Pittsburgh, PA losing population. Baltimore, MD Portland, OR Each of the region’s counties has grown, developed, Boston, MA Raleigh, NC and evolved. Over the past 10 years, the population of Charlotte, NC Richmond, VA the region has grown by more than 180,000 persons. Cleveland, OH San Diego, CA The region has remained highly competitive and is a Dallas-Fort Worth, TX St. Louis, MO leader in many of the indicators tracked. Key indica- Denver, CO Seattle, WA tors where Greater Baltimore has improved its rank- Indianapolis, IN Tampa, FL ing among the regions studied since the first State of Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN Washington, D.C. the Region report in 1998 include: Many other regions met our criteria, but the final • Per Capita Personal Income; from 10th to 6th list was determined to be a representative and di- • Median Household Income; from 7th to 4th verse national sample. The largest U.S. metropolitan • Percentage of Minority-Owned firms; from 7th areas, such as New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles, to 3rd were not included because their size would dramati- • College Education Attainment (persons 25 years cally skew the comparison. and older); from 13th to 10th Greater Baltimore State of the Region Report 2007 7 This report presents a set of indicators published Major changes since the 2005 State of the Region by credible third parties that are important to gauge Report include: the health and performance of urban regions. The New and changed tables: Several tables have been