What Causes Job Creation Far From Where Job-Seekers Live

A little while ago, I suggested that people check in with bloggers Rick Esenberg and Paul Soglin as they debate urban issues.

Rick, my colleague and the durable, conservative punching bag on Eric Von's "Backstory" Thursday afternoon drive-time roundtable on AM 1290 in Milwaukee, blogs here.

The liberal Paul, for whom I worked in his first incarnation as Madison Mayor, blogs here.


I tend to stay out of much of the bloggers' back-and-forth: a great deal of it is goofy-talk among journalist wannabees, but the Soglin-Esenberg discussion is worth reading because they both have something to say.

On Rick's blog today, where he tackies something wonky-sounding called "spatial mismatch" - - the physical distance between where jobs are being created (the burbs, generally) and where the job seekers live (central cities, principally) - - I inserted a comment that I'll post below, since I think it belongs in the discussion.

The comment text is at the bottom of this post, set of by quotation marks.

I probably should have simply made an item out of it for my own blog, and not helped drive up Rick's traffic count, but, hey - - I'm a generous and tolerant guy - - so why not?


Comment text:

"Let's not forget that the "spatial mismatch" is also being exacerbated by highway spending, which helps open up land in exurbia to commercial, retail and residential development.


And those are public funds, too - - a mix of local, state and federal dollars - - so several public policies intersect and add to the separation of jobs from the most-available pool."


Rick and Paul: Take it away.





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