Post on 17-Dec-2015
transcript
Richmond’s FutureInter-regional StrategiesBob HolsworthOctober 30, 2014
4 Inter-regional Questions Are there common interests with Hampton Roads
that should lead to joint endeavors? Can RVA benefit from the economic dynamism of
NOVA while retaining its quality of place advantages?
Can RVA take better advantage of its status as the state capital of Virginia?
Can we envision a Higher Education Corridor up and down I-64 in which colleges and universities collaborate on innovative curricula, research, community engagement, and cost reduction?
Hampton Roads-Richmond:Collaboration Chronology
Tom Frantz presents ideas about a mega-region to Richmond’s Future
Gene Trani and Bob Holsworth present information about Richmond’s Future to Norfolk business community.
Follow-up conversation abut potential joint research topics
Meeting organized at W&M between Hampton Roads business community and members of Richmond’s Business Roundtable.
Memorandum of agreement signed by respective business communities to focus joint attention on I-64 widening, Port relations, and opportunities related to potential 460 widening
Hampton Roads (HR): State of the Region
Produced annually by Dr. Jim Koch and his team at ODU
HR ranks 302 out of 381 U.S. metro areas in employment growth (2.4%) since the end of the “Great Recession”
The average of Virginia metro areas (excluding HR) is 221 (4.5%) out of 381
HR employment growth in the last 12 months ranks 321 out of 381 U.S. metro areas (-.1%)
RVA had has the highest employment growth (1.9%) in the last 12 months of Virginia metro areas, ranking 124 out of 381.
Hampton Roads:Defense and Tourism
Total defense spending in HR relatively steady since 2011, buoyed by two major contracts at Newport News Shipyard
Yet personnel and ships continue to decline because of overall downsizing, shift in strategic focus and cost of military assets
Hotel revenues in 2013 were 6.8% below their peak in 2007.
Over the last 15 years, regional hotel market share in Virginia Beach increased from 33.2% to 40.8%
Regional hotel market share in Williamsburg has decreased from 31.5% to 18.3%
Data from Koch’s State of the Region
Hampton Roads:Port of Virginia
Activity at the Port of Virginia is the major bright spot in the HR economy
Market share continues to grow with 17.21% of the east coast Market, up from 14.88% in 2011
Has generated an operating profit in 5 of the last 6 months
Will have a relative advantage in the post-Panamax era for several years
CSX and NS upgrades should benefit the PortInformation from Koch’s State of the Region
RVA-HR Collaboration Most fruitful area may be to focus on matters related
to capitalizing on the growth at the Port of Virginia. Potential investments in upgrades at the Port of
Richmond to increase barge traffic Can the Port of Richmond be developed as an inland
port? Are there “valued-added” opportunities in terms of
distribution facilities and light manufacturing along routes from the Port.
Can an enhanced route460 be a catalyst for economic development?
NOVA Dynamism NOVA is part of a world-class metro area –NOVA-D.C.-MD Per capital personal income in NOVA is approximately $15,000
above the statewide average of $48,773. NOVA is the only region of the state where personal income is
above the state average. Highest educational attainment levels in the state, more than
50% of adults over 25 have at least a Bachelor’s degree Has almost double the advanced degree attainment (22.9%)
of any other region Highest third grade reading performance Most concentrated tech community Most multi-cultural and diverse region
Data taken from Virginia Performs
NOVA Challenges Traffic, Traffic, Traffic Federal budget cuts have stalled the
growth machine Employment growth in the past 12
months ranks 256 out of 381 U.S. metro areas
Relatively high cost of living Overall quality of place concerns
RVA v. NOVA:2nd in the state
RVA is often second highest region in the state on most economic and educational indicators
Second highest per capita income Second highest Bachelor’s degree
attainment Second highest advanced degree attainment In the last 12 months, employment growth
rate has outperformed NOVA
RVA v. NOVA:Quality of Place
RVA reports the least traffic congestion of major Virginia metro areas (Virginia Performs)
RVA cost of housing and cost of living is considerably lower
RVA is developing more of the amenities that make NOVA attractive to a multicultural public
A NOVA-RVA Connection? NOVA has extended south to Fredericksburg in the last
30 years. Further southern expansion limited by road capacity
and/or time and reliability of trains. High speed rail could be a potential game-changer,
actually connecting the Urban Crescent in ways that are inconceivable today
But high speed rail will not occur in the short term- most likely scenario in the next 5-10 years is higher speed rail, perhaps shortening trip from RVA to D.C. to 90 minutes.
A long-term RVA vision should consider potential advantages that higher and high speed rail could bring.
Can RVA LeverageIts State Capital Status?
The economic development literature rarely uses state capital status as a category
State capitals are extraordinarily diverse- some are major, national cities, others are isolated, relatively small locales, other are mid-sized metro area- don’t always have similar economic development or tourism profiles.
New York does identify the district around Albany as the Capital District in its regional economic development strategy- promoting its mix of a first class university, smart people, high tech capacity, and entrepreneurial spirit
What Might RVA Do Utilize capital city status in three ways:
Promote the mix of higher education, talented people, high tech innovation and quality of place in economic development efforts.
Define ourselves as the heart and soul or essence of the new “Virginia” for branding purposes- the vibrant mix of artistic culture, nationally recognized restaurants, extraordinary architecture, and a fresh examination of our heritage and history.
Use the amazing restoration of the Capitol itself as a draw in itself (see the reviews on Trip Advisor) and provide easier parking access for visitors.
Better position RVA to recruit young talent from the education corridor within and adjacent to the capital city.
A Higher Education Corridor? “There is a lot of talk about disruption in
higher education. We think that the real disruption will come through collaboration…. While there are many institutions that have come up with creative solutions to some of our sectors’ most urgent problems, these ideas rarely travel far from where they are hatched.”
Michael Crow, President, Arizona State University
Decentralized Universities:Serving Virginia Well Virginia’s public university system is relatively
decentralized Each four-college has an independent board with
a statewide coordinating body (SCHEV) The Community College System has a statewide
policy-making board supplemented by individual boards for each college.
The decentralized approach has enabled Virginia to create a powerful public university system where multiple universities have strong regional and national reputations
Decentralized Universities:Voluntary Collaboration
Extensive articulation agreements between community colleges and four ear institutions.
The Top Jobs Legislation of 2011 provided incentives for colleges and universities to deliver more degrees, to increase production in high demand STEM-H areas, and to more fully utilize resources and facilities.
Universities have developed research collaborations such as VMS/VCU Rice Center in Conservation Biology.
CCAM and CCALS are models of businesses and multiple universities collaborating
4-VA is a collaboration among 4 Virginia colleges and universities with Cisco Systems that is utilizing telepresence and other technologies to promote course sharing, degree completion and research collaborations.
Incentivized Collaboration? Reduce average student debt load with
incentives to graduate from community colleges before transferring to a four year institution.
Having SCHEV require information about plans for inter-institutional collaboration on course sharing, research collaborations, and community engagement to be part of an institution’s six year plan.
Adjust funding formulas to reward institutions and recognize faculty members for successful cross-institution collaboration
Higher EducationOn the I-64 Corridor
In fall, 2013, there were 105,579 students enrolled in the 7 public four-year institutions on the I-64 corridor (CNU, W&M, NSU, ODU, UVA, VCU, and VSU) between Charlottesville and Norfolk.
The I-64 schools had 49% of the total enrollment (214, 667) in Virginia’s four year public colleges and universities and more than 50% of the total graduate enrollment
4 of the state’s five largest community colleges (JSRCC, JTCC, TCC, TNCC) are also located on the corridor
3 of the state’s 4 largest privates (Hampton, Richmond, and Regent) are also located on the corridor.
The majority of enrollment in advanced health care education occurs in schools along the corridor. (includes EVMS)
How RVA Can Benefit Establish more organized efforts to recruit
students from the corridor to live and work in RVA
Develop and brand a community college-four year school collaboration to reduce the cost of an education
Develop collaborations that enable RVA to utilize the institutions on the corridor to recruit high value businesses
Develop collaborations to address key regional social challenges
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