Hampton Roads Ranks in Bottom Tier for Economic Recovery

A new Brookings Institute report doesn't hold good news for the Hampton Roads region of Virginia. The report ranks the area among “the 20 weakest-performing metro areas” based on rebounding economies. Richmond likewise falls in this category. For anyone following the local economy and cognizant of the backwards policies of Virginia and the brain drain of the college educated ranks, the low ranking is no surprise. The rest of the world is moving forward into the 21st century while Virginia is racing backwards in time as evidenced by the new adoption regulations commented upon in a prior post. Indeed, it seems Virginia wants to challenge South Carolina and Mississippi for bottom rankings in myriad categories if the current policies continue. The equivalent of a huge sign has been placed on the state that reads "progressive and innovative businesses and individuals not welcome." Here are some highlights from the Virginian Pilot:

Hampton Roads ranks in the bottom tier of metro areas in terms of recovery from the recession, according to a Brookings Institution report to be released today.

The area, listed as “Virginia Beach,” had placed in the top 20 of 100 metropolitan regions in Brookings’ quarterly reports as recently as June 2010. The December report put Hampton Roads among “the 20 weakest-performing metro areas” based on rebounding economies. That bottom group also includes Richmond and Greensboro, N.C.

[F]actors that contributed to the region’s poor showing:

- “Your housing market hasn’t even started to recover,” he said. “In most places, housing prices hit bottom in the second quarter of this year and started to recover.”

- The “gross metropolitan product,” defined as “the total value of goods and services produced,” has risen more slowly in Hampton Roads than in most regions.

Like other economists, Wial noted the region’s reliance on military and government employment. “You actually gained government jobs” since the low point of the recession, he said. But “looking forward, if we’re going to be in a period of federal government cutbacks – which, unfortunately, is looking that way – that doesn’t bode well for your region’s economy.”

So are most of the city fathers looking to do anything different? Of course not with the possible exception of City of Hampton which is seemingly willing to embrace LGBT innovators. One cannot continue to employ the same failed measures and expect a different result. Yet that's precisely what one sees in most of Hampton Roads. And as a result, the "creative class ' for the most part flees the area.