Michigan launches nationwide talent recruitment effort to address stagnant Population

[313WX]

You can put lipstick, a dress and a wig on a pig. You can also showcase this pig for all the world to see.

But at the end of the day, it's still a pig.

People move to places for economic opportunity, where their livelihoods aren't heavily dependent upon 2.5 companies experiencing a secular decline in a single industry that are notorious for hiring to fire every few years. People move to states with healthy/vibrant major cities. People move to places where the the total taxes/insurance paid is proprtional to the value gained [[meaning in return, they get good roads, functioning rapid transit systems, sewerage systems that don't shut down & lead to 500 years floods every time there's a thunderstorm, urban/industrial blight that isn't overbearing, etc.).

Until Michigan addresses this stuff, it will continue to bleed peoppe and no amount of money wasted on fultile marketing efforts will make a difference. There's literally nothing exceptional Michigan offers that would entice the young talent it seeks to move/stay in the state.

https://apnews.com/article/whitmer-p...7df2efafb668bf

LANSING, Mich. [[AP) — Michigan is launching a $20 million nationwide marketing initiative aimed at boosting the state’s decades-long sluggish population growth by attracting and retaining young talent.

The campaign, which was unveiled Tuesday by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, will include television, radio and online advertisements in 11 states. It will be the largest state-led talent attraction effort in the U.S., according to the state’s economic development board.

Whitmer and other state leaders have looked for ways to grow the population after the 2020 census revealed a population increase of only 1.7% over the previous decade. Michigan, the 10th most populous state in the nation, had the 49th slowest rate of population growth since 2000. Only West Virginia’s was slower.

[Richard]

It’s based on the talent is sitting there twiddling their thumbs while looking for somewhere chic to move to.

It’s also based on the assumption all of the talent is looking for somewhere to move to so they can continue working for somebody.

Instead of ignoring the fastest growing segment,which is entrepreneurs,they should be marketing the deficiencies.

Corporations and talent did not build Michigan or Detroit ,individuals with an idea did as they expanded that idea into corporations that provided jobs.

Talent is not looking for what you have to offer,they are looking at how they can use their talents in the best way and that is not by punching a time card.

They are not looking for talented people they are looking for people that will work while not allowing them to fully develop their talent to its full potential in a confined,you do not just take full grown flower an stick it in the ground so you can say - look it’s a bunch of flowers ready for the picking,it takes planting a seed and nurturing it into a flower.

Anybody can go to the nursery and buy a bunch of flowers anywhere in the country.

I kinda think they should be marketing the bad things,talent is creative minds and creative minds love a challenge and a fixer upper.

You can buy instant grits at any supermarket,they just do not taste the same when you slow cook them yourself.

What does an artist do? They take a vision that they created in their mind and transfer it to the canvas where it becomes a reality.

All the deficiencies is the canvas,you are not looking for talent,while trying to compete with 100s of other cities,you are looking for the artists.

[401don]

Ontario is taking in 200,000 immigrants per year. The problem of course is there is nowhere to house them, affordable or otherwise. Int'l students are a great source of skilled, tech talent. Offer more reasonable int'l student rates, grant them work visas and then application for permanent residency.

[royce]

I agree with 313WX that the state needs to focus on what it doesn't do better than other states and try to get on par with them as closely as they can. Transit/lack thereof here is still a major detriment to attracting the young. Young people are not buying cars like young folks used to do in the past mainly because cars are too expensive for the income that young folks are receiving, so they look for places that have transit to get them to where they want to go.

Now, because many of these places are becoming so expensive to live, more and more young folks might look at Michigan, particularly Detroit, as a place to live because the cost of living is so much lower than other major cities. The need for cheaper housing might exceed their need for great transit. I'm not sure if the state wants to promote that [[cheaper housing), but that is definitely something the state, particularly Detroit, has going for itself right now.

[shovelhead]

Call me a cynic but wasn’t the “Cool Cities” Initiative of twenty years ago supposed to be the answer?

[gratiotfaced]

It cannot be emphasized enough how badly the lack of rapid transit here hurts us.

Young people want walkable/vibrant urban neighborhoods, and maybe 10% of the metro area falls under the category. The few areas that fit that bill have no rapid transit connecting them together anyways. The rest is generic suburban sprawl you can find anywhere.

Even Cleveland and St. Louis, two smaller Rust Belt cities, have light rail to the airport and across town. It's embarrassing that we're so behind.

It is not normal for a city of 4M in a developed nation to barely have a functional bus system -- it's third world shit and we need to stop pretending otherwise. Sadly, neither political party seems to care about this issue and I don't see the status quo changing as a result.

[313WX]

Call me a cynic but wasn’t the “Cool Cities” Initiative of twenty years ago supposed to be the answer?

Indeed it was.

Whitmer's advisors apparently decided it would be a good political move to resurrect that failed initiative, make a few tweaks to it, and give it another try.

[Gistok]

Michigan has leftover Covid funds that are either used, or returned to the Feds. There are other initiatives that the state has instituted with leftover funds... one is to help lower income people who got behind in taxes in 2020-2022 which the state will help cover, and another one is to help lower income people pay outstanding large water bills.

Michigan has to either use the miscellaneous funds, or return them.

[Honky Tonk]

Michigan has to either use the miscellaneous funds, or return them.

Pissing it away on nonsense, now that's Pure Michigan.

[Gistok]

Pissing it away on nonsense, now that's Pure Michigan.

I'm sure many [all?] states are doing this. Returning the money to the Feds, and then using it to pay down the debt would be nice... but that's not how things work, the feds will find ways to spend it...

[Richard]

The irony of going into debt to pay down debt.

I have not dissected all of the wheelbarrow full of cash but most was limited as to how it is spent,no debt payments and no pension funding etc.

But that not to say it could not have been washed and ended up there anyways.

I do remember there was one allocation that was - spend it on what you like no holds barred.

But like in Detroit the demolition money had to be spent on that,use it or lose it ,but there was talk about clawbacks,not sure what happened with that.

Agreed though Michigan does not hold the bar for citys creative spending.

It has made some in cities very rich because of the money allotted to addressing homeless and affordable housing,because there are no restrictions as to how much of it actually has to go into the solution and with the cost of inflation admin is very expensive.

That is starting to outpace being a politician if you want to be a millionaire,much quicker and easier when pretending to care about the homeless and affordable housing,the money tree planted in the back yard is real.

[MichaelAnthonyVideos]

This summer my auto insurance went up over 100% after adding my wife to the policy and neither one of us has any points on our record.

Property tax and gas tax also went up this year.

I'm being driven out of Michigan.

[Jimaz]

This summer my auto insurance went up over 100% after adding my wife to the policy and neither one of us has any points on our record....

Wouldn't 100% stand to reason? Isn't how much over 100% what matters?

I'm not saying it isn't unfair. I'm just asking what you would consider fair.

[MichaelAnthonyVideos]

Wouldn't 100% stand to reason? Isn't how much over 100% what matters?

I'm not saying it isn't unfair. I'm just asking what you would consider fair.

I just know that a 100% increase is unreasonable when we already pay some of the highest auto rates in the country, if not the world.

Those refund checks a couple of years ago was a big scam.

[MichaelAnthonyVideos]

Even our Amtrack station is an embarrassment. Toledo has a bigger train station than Detroit does.

[Zacha341]

It's pretty expensive indeed. There's always California which is really OUT-OF-CONTROL [crime and ancillary costs related to that/ housing and lack of housing costs/ service fees/ state taxes etc]. Coupled with their own exodus of those seeking relief!

I'm being driven out of Michigan.

[shovelhead]

Indeed it was.

Whitmer's advisors apparently decided it would be a good political move to resurrect that failed initiative, make a few tweaks to it, and give it another try.

Yep, Pure Michigan. If at first you don’t succeed keep throwing taxpayer money at it.

[Honky Tonk]

I'm sure many [all?] states are doing this. Returning the money to the Feds, and then using it to pay down the debt would be nice... but that's not how things work, the feds will find ways to spend it...

You, of course, are absolutely right. My point is all this nonsense has been tried in the past and has failed. "Say YES to Michigan". [and on a lighter note "Say YA to da UP"] TV commercials, newspaper ads, bumper stickers, and today we're in the same spot we've always been. So to me this isn't a brilliant solution. I seriously doubt anyone's going to pack up and move to Michigan based on an ad.

[Richard]

This summer my auto insurance went up over 100% after adding my wife to the policy and neither one of us has any points on our record.

Property tax and gas tax also went up this year.

I'm being driven out of Michigan.

Where are you going to go?

Where I am at a studio rents for $1100 per month ,that’s a 10x10 room with a bathroom,medium house starts at $350k,forget about the same increase in utility and already expensive auto insurance costs and homeowners insurance that has jumped over 100% if you can find it.

But yet people still keep pouring in,as far as major populations,Detroit and the bigger cities in Michigan are actually one of the most cheapest places to currently live in the country.

If one said people are being driven out of other cities to Michigan it would be more logical,the question is how come they are not?

I could sell out in Florida and have the same standard of living in Michigan for 1/2 the base costs.

They say there is a housing crisis across the rest of the country,but there is not really,it’s an expectation crisis,as long as people are convinced in their mind something exists,it does,so you just have to exploit that and get them to move there.

Tampa is considered one of the best cities to move to,we have 1 street car line,insane traffic,not much of a public transportation system,the same amount of things to do as you guys and it is expensive to live.

What started that movement was a lie,during the last real estate crash the state said Tampa was the city with the most jobs available in the state,so people flocked to it.

Later the state admitted that it was based on false pretense,but it worked,people moved there and that very movement of the people created what did not exist before.

It either takes money to do all the things you need to do to attract people,or you have to convince the people to move there that brings the money to do the things you need to do to keep them there after they wake up.

[5939DT]

Young people want walkable/vibrant urban neighborhoods,

Until their first child gets to be 4 years old, then it's off to the suburbs and their relatively functional school systems.

[Rocket]

Until their first child gets to be 4 years old, then it's off to the suburbs and their relatively functional school systems.

Exactly.


And the walkable city thing is what the elites are pushing on the masses. It's what their propaganda is telling young people they should want.

At the same time various governments are building 15 minute cities. But these mostly fail, because they aren't good to live in in real life.

And even the young people that fall for the propaganda, and think it'll be cool to wait for a train 2-4 times a day [[in the winter) so they can get from their 600 sf ft studio to their Starbucks barrista job, well, even that presumes low crime.

[canuck]

Exactly.


And the walkable city thing is what the elites are pushing on the masses. It's what their propaganda is telling young people they should want.

At the same time various governments are building 15 minute cities. But these mostly fail, because they aren't good to live in in real life.

And even the young people that fall for the propaganda, and think it'll be cool to wait for a train 2-4 times a day [[in the winter) so they can get from their 600 sf ft studio to their Starbucks barrista job, well, even that presumes low crime.

Well, your presumption seems to be that a transit poor city with a zillion cars as an alternative is a safer place to be, than the opposite?

[MichaelAnthonyVideos]

A new housing crisis is here with the millions if illegals crossing the border.

[Richard]

Well, your presumption seems to be that a transit poor city with a zillion cars as an alternative is a safer place to be, than the opposite?

It’s kinda strange how all of that works,my sons wife’s mother ,do not know that technical term so feel free to focus on that,grew up in S Philly,68 years old,never drove a car or had a license as she raised 4 kids,public transportation.

That public transportation is still there but she would never be able to afford to live there today.

We have a street car that stretches for miles,you know who does not ride it ?

The youngsters who say they like public transit options.

Go to Orlando that has a complex light rail system and it is packed,mostly because it is people moving from adjoining city to adjoining city and the rail is quicker and easier then driving in the dense traffic.

So you need a dense population and interconnected,but it comes down to a chicken and egg thing,you need the density to pay for it.

[Ray1936]

A new housing crisis is here with the millions if illegals crossing the border.

Yeah, we just gotta do something about all these dang Canadians.