What Makes Nation's Hippest Cities Tick?
Oct. 14 -- Forbes magazine rates Cincinnati No. 39 on a list of the 40 best cities for singles. This hardly thrills Sid D'Souza, a native who opted to return home after graduating from Yale three years ago.
He knows the old joke that Cincinnati is the place you'd want to be when the world ends because everything happens 10 years later there. But despite the city's image problems, D'Souza believes that Cincinnati, like other cities in the same boat, is waking up to the need to attract and retain young residents.
They have to, experts say, because a younger population means a stronger economy.
But what does it take to be considered "cool" by 20- and 30-somethings? And is it likely that places like Cincinnati and 40th-ranked Pittsburgh are ever going to become as hip and desirable as, say, Austin, Texas (No. 1), San Francisco (6), or New York City (8)?
Some cities have built-in advantages that would be hard to duplicate in Kansas City (36) or Cleveland (37). Austin's music and high-tech scenes, for instance, Boston's culture (which pushed it into third place), or New York's night life.
But other cities need major makeovers, because in today's mobile society, young people seem less tethered than ever to where they grew up. After college, many look as much at lifestyle as jobs in deciding where to locate.
Nothing is more important for singles than to meet and mingle with other singles, according to Forbes. Fun lures them to cities — and jobs keep them there.
The Appeal of Creativity
Creative workers, such as artists, scientists, writers, and computer programmers, are the most sought-after group.
They hold the key to modern economic vitality, says author Richard Florida, a Carnegie Mellon University professor whose book on the subject, The Rise of the Creative Class, is influential in urban-planning circles.
A central tenet of the book is that the sense of place and the existence of opportunity-rich job markets are leading factors to help members of the creative class decide where they will live.
