The Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy's (CLOSUP) Tom Ivacko wrote a two-part column for Dome magazine about the declining health of Michigan cities and what is being done to combat this decline.
In part one, "Michigan Cities Suffer Declining Health (Part 1)," Ivacko discusses the challenges facing local governments in the state of Michigan—including unemployment, homelessness, crime, brain drain, failing infrastructure, disinvestment, and more—and what the last few years of retrenchment and declining health mean for the state.
"The bad news is abundant," Ivacko writes. "Our cities are suffering, and we need them to thrive. Thankfully, there is good news, too. Michigan's cities are also adapting to these challenges in important ways."
In part two, "Cities Responding to Fiscal Challenges (Part 2)," Ivacko explains how many Michigan governments are combating their declining fiscal health through tough policies and collaboration.
"Whether they are going far enough fast enough is an open question; whether they are taking action is not," writes Ivacko.
[Read about the financial struggles of local governments in the latest Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS) report, media coverage.]