 Longworth is part of the Vandewalle & Associates consulting firm
team that was hired to write the master plan, and he is the author
of "Caught in the Middle." In his book he addresses the economic
fall of the Midwest, the mindset of the people and what changes need
to be made for the Midwest to once again prosper.
He stays current and active in moving the Midwest forward as a
senior fellow at the Chicago Council of Global Affairs, a former
distinguished visiting scholar at DePaul University, and as author
and host of the blog "The Midwesterner" on the website of the
Chicago Council of the Global Midwest Initiative. He joined the
council in 2003 as the executive director of the Global Chicago
Center.
Additionally, he's a retired journalist who was with the Chicago
Tribune for 20 years as a foreign correspondent.
Longworth began by saying that he was not going to pretend to
tell the group about their county, as those in the room were much
more informed on that subject than he was at the moment.
Instead he planned on discussing discoveries he had made in his
40,000-mile journey across the Midwest as he conducted research for
his book.
Over a span of the next 20 minutes, Longworth touched on several
topics that he discusses in detail in his book. He told the audience
that while none of them were specific to Logan County, there were
many similarities that the audience would be able to relate to.
Historically the Midwest -- which Longworth characterized as
being Ohio, Indiana, the northern two-thirds of Illinois, portions
of Missouri, Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska -- has always been a leader
in the nation in industry and agriculture.
In his book, Longworth wrote that whatever happens in America
happens in the Midwest first.
"The mills of
Chicago and the factories of Detroit powered America's Industrial
revolution. Here commerce boomed and labor wars first raged. The
great reformers -- Debs and Dewey, Bryan and La Follette, Jane
Addams and Betty Friedan -- sprang from Midwestern soil. The Great
Depression began on Midwestern farms, ten years before the Crash.
When the nation recovered in the 1940's, the Midwest recovered
first, and most spectacularly. When American industry declined
twenty years later, the decline started in the Rust Belt of the
Midwest, along with the textile towns of New England. Midwestern
steel mills, Midwestern auto factories, and Midwestern television
makers felt the first sting of foreign competition, especially from
Japan, as world markets began to open, long before globalization
appeared."
Today it is the latter part of the statement that is of great
concern to Longworth.
Modern technology has made industry and agriculture more
efficient, but not without cost. While industry and agriculture are
still the greatest source of revenue for the Midwest, production has
been streamlined and manpower has been reduced.
Longworth noted that farms are growing larger, but the number of
farmers is actually declining. Manufacturing has become so efficient
that fewer workers are needed to produce the same volume of goods as
in the past.
The result is that jobs are at a premium, and communities are
losing their populations as people leave the area in search of
better opportunities.
Longworth said that what has to happen is that communities must
reinvent themselves in order to survive. He said that Midwesterners
don't like change on the whole, but change is what is necessary.
[to top of second column] |
In the end, the master plan will be the blueprint for change in
Logan County. Joel Smiley, executive director of the Lincoln & Logan
County Development Partnership, said that the plan will outline
specifically what business and industries can be drawn to the area,
based on the assets of the communities.
Once it is completed, Smiley suggested that the master plan be
the beginning of a three- to five-year process that will ultimately
provide jobs to Logan County residents, increase the overall
population of the county and improve the economic stability of its
citizens as well as local governments.
[By NILA SMITH]
Past related articles
Information to help you understand the who, what, how, when and why
of Logan County’s economic growth planning:
Logan County Regional Planning Commission FAQ
sheet
The
Lincoln
& Logan County Development Partnership
received a $50,000 grant award from the U.S. Department of
Agriculture to develop the Logan County Economic Master Plan.
The Logan County Economic Development Master Plan will use the Logan
County Comprehensive Plan completed in 2006. (See
Logan County Comprehensive Plan.)
How the plan was developed:
 |
