Job growth key to building prosperity

When it comes to the economic development sales tax — on the ballot next Tuesday in Mississippi County — I admit I have been on the fence.

On one hand, I can plainly see the success of the tax, in the way of the roughly 3,000 jobs that have been created since its inception seven years ago. Besides that, I'm a strong believer in the aggressive and continuous pursuit of economic development projects.

On the other hand, I am concerned about the continued lack of prosperity in our county, in spite of the jobs that have been created. The lack of prosperity can be observed in several ways, ranging from population declines to shuttered store fronts. I've wondered whether or not there might be some other strategies that ought to be considered when it comes to building a better community for those who live here.

But at the end of the day, I stand with those in support of the sales tax, for the simple fact that it's too soon to pass judgment on the success or failure of our economic development efforts. Seven years isn't enough time to build an economy.

For me, the whole thing comes down to prosperity. Are we building it, or are we losing it? Some signs are discouraging, such as the aforementioned population decline and empty storefronts.

Yet to be fair, there have been positive signs as well. For instance, one of the greatest barometers of a community's prosperity is per capita income. And in Mississippi County, from 2000 to 2007, per capita income climbed from $18,383 to $26,040, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysts. That's an encouraging sign.

And even though we can all rattle off lists of businesses that have closed in the past decade, there are many that have opened as well. It wasn't that long ago that the area along Highway 18 east of Blytheville was nothing but cotton fields. Today, the area is bustling with retail development.

Yet anyone who would claim Blytheville — or Mississippi County — is booming just isn't paying attention. Whether it's the constant drone of the local drug trade or the lack of skilled laborers, it's clear that we are not a prosperous community yet.

To me, much of it comes down to population. Where there is prosperity, the population grows; where prosperity is lacking, population declines. It will still be several months before the 2010 Census numbers start coming in, but most watchers expect to see continued declines for cities like Blytheville. A drop in the county population wouldn't be unexpected either.

This is a big problem. It's the reason why we haven't seen the retail growth we all desire; it's the reason Mississippi County is an importer of labor.

If you ask me, the "Apollo Project" for our area over the next decade ought to be the stabilization of our population base. Local leaders ought to pursue potential residents with as much zeal and ingenuity as they have for potential employers. If we can't begin to see population growth by 2020, we probably never will.

So how do you build population? Well, there's a number of things you've got to do. You've got to keep crime to a minimum. You've got to have attractive local schools. You've got to maintain a strong infrastructure. You've got to develop quality-of-life enhancements, like parks and museums.

But you've also got to have jobs. No area can ever expect to experience growth without an abundance — perhaps a surplus — of jobs.

And ultimately, that's why I support the half-cent sales tax for economic development. Ample employment opportunities are the cornerstone to any effort to build population and develop prosperity.

But job growth is only the first step. More must be done to fill local jobs with local people. More must be done to fight crime and fix the infrastructure. More must be done to make people want to live in Mississippi County.

Economic development is about more than luring factories. It is about building prosperity. The sales tax for economic development should stay, because it is a key part to all that. But local leaders — and local citizens — still have years of work to do before the job will be done.