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Fresno Must Transform into a Creative Economy or Get Left Behind, Report Says

January 30, 2006

To survive economically in an innovation-based economy, Fresno needs to foster the creativity of its people and attract others into the population, says a recent report from the Fresno Creative Economy Council. While encouraging creativity to spur innovation and economic growth has captured the attention of cities and regions across the continent, how to accomplish that goal is less clear for many. Civic leaders for the central California community of 460,000 believe they have charted an achievable course.

The report to Mayor Alan Autry and the Fresno City Council looks at four spheres of change for transforming Fresno into a community that will retain, attract, develop, and support knowledge workers. These include mindset, smart growth, urban living, and quality of place. Within each sphere are strategic goals alongside several recommendations to be implemented by city leaders.

Fresno either will become a part of the creative economy or will exist to provide cheap services to cities and regions that are thriving in the creative economy, the report states. Regions that merely provide services to the dominant economy can expect lower incomes and continued flight of the best and brightest citizens, not unlike Third World economies.

Following in the steps of several other cities and states throughout the U.S., Fresno leaders recognize the importance of building and supporting a progressive work environment in order to compete for knowledge workers in the 21st Century. In 2004, for example, the Vermont Council on Culture and Innovation released the nation's first statewide economic development strategy based on creative economy theories (see the Dec. 20, 2004 issue of the Digest).

The Fresno Creative Economy Council reviewed and shared information and research on the creative class movement and interviewed subject matter experts in key areas to develop its recommendations, which include:

  • Educate the municipal staff and general public on the 2005 Fresno General plan and encourage their support;
  • Develop a strategic marketing plan to communicate the brand and image of the area both internally and externally;
  • Support arts, culture and music in the Fresno area through zoning ordinances and funding opportunities;
  • Commission a formal study researching the potential for Fresno to become a national leader in clean technology;
  • Prioritize the preservation of existing structures and offer incentives to restore rather than rebuild;
  • Create efficient public transportation routes to and from Downtown and the Tower District to Fresno State;
  • Provide free Wireless (Wi-Fi) access to the Downtown core; and,
  • Review city policies to support the technological needs of start-up businesses.

The report is a follow-up to the 2005 survey, Livability Priorities for the Fresno Creative Class. Respondents to the survey were clustered into three groups: knowledge workers who have lived in the area for over five years; knowledge workers who have recently arrived in the area; and future knowledge workers currently seeking higher education. This group was then benchmarked against a sample of general population workers who are not considered knowledge workers. The Lyles Center for Innovation, which conducted the survey, indicated its the intent was to gain insight on the livability of the city.

Respondents were polled on the factors that are important when choosing a place to live and asked to rate how Fresno compared. The city exceeded levels of importance in the areas of access to outdoor recreation, ethnic and cultural diversity, and away from urban life. However, respondents said that Fresno was low in meeting levels of importance in the ability to have a job they are happy with, entertainment venues, and arts and creative scene.

Making the Grass Greener: Recommendations to Retain, Attract, Develop, and Support Knowledge Workers and other council reports are available at http://www.fresnocec.org/.

Links to this paper and more than 3,000 additional TBED-related research reports, strategic plans and other papers can be found at the Tech-based Economic Development (TBED) Resource Center, jointly developed by the Technology Administration and SSTI, at http://www.tbedresourcecenter.org/.

California