How we are faring overall
Key trends
Key measures in each of our eight topic areas were selected by 300+ volunteers
from academia, private industry, public and non-profit sectors, who assisted
us in shaping this project. Below
we highlight some of the findings from these measures.
Civic Engagement → Regional strength, regional potential
According to a Twin Cities Compass survey conducted by Wilder Research in 2007,
6 out of 10 residents feel that the ability of people to work together to improve
the community is good or outstanding. The same survey found 87 percent have
volunteered during the past 12 months. Read more
Early Childhood → A good start that could be better
Birth weight and early screening for potential learning and health concerns are two important measures for determining a child’s long-term health and success. While better than the nation as a whole, our region’s rate of low-weight births seems to be creeping upward. On the other hand, most children are screened before they enter school, and efforts to screen children at a younger age are paying off: about three-quarters of children screened by public schools districts are screened by
age 4. Read more
Economy and Workforce → Losing the Midwest magic?
The status is mixed: we lead the nation in workforce participation, but our unemployment rate is now reaching 20 year highs. We have relatively high incomes and low poverty rates, but not for all racial and ethnic groups. Our economic output per capita is relatively high, but our growth rate out of the 2001 recession lagged behind the nation. How and when will we come out of the current recession: Will we lead? Or get left behind? Read more
Education → Not quite making the grade
Overall, only about 7 of 10 of our region’s students graduate
on time from high school; rates for Black and Hispanic students are about half
of that number. About 1 of three 11th grade students achieves state
standards in math. Read more
Environment → Water water everywhere, but is it as clean as you think ?
Of the region's 138 public access lakes (10 acres or larger), 86 percent either do not meet basic standards or have other impairments. Since 2000, the air quality index, which is the Environmental Protection Agency's measure of our air quality on a daily basis, has rated our air as "moderate" or worse nearly 40 percent of the time. Minnesota's average annual greenhouse gas emissions are increasing at a rate nearly double that of the nation. Read more
Health → A region weighing itself down?
The increase in the obesity rate has become a national public
health issue. In our region, the rate has more than doubled since
1990, from about 10 percent to nearly 25 percent. It is especially
troubling to see significant racial disparities in obesity and other
health concerns. In addition, Of Color populations are also most
likely to lack health coverage. Read
more
Housing → Mortgaging people’s futures
Minnesota continues to have one of the highest home ownership
rates in the U.S., but the proportion of the region’s households who are cost-burdened, that is paying 30 percent
or more of their income for housing, increased during the 2000s from about 24
percent to about 34 percent. The homeownership gap between Whites and Persons
Of Color is substantially worse than for the U.S. Read more
Public Safety → Our property is safer,
but are we?
Property and violent crime rates are generally lower this decade than they
were in the 1990s. However, in 2006 and 2007, violent crime rates were higher than they were in the prior seven years. Victimization
rates–including both reported and unreported
crimes—tend to be higher for those living in the central cities as well
as those with lower incomes. Read more
Transportation → Are we there yet?
The annual rate of traffic injuries and deaths has continually decreased over the last seven years. Yet, more than 19,000 people were seriously injured in motor vehicle accidents in 2006. We are tracking bridge ratings as one indicator of the health of our infrastructure and, despite the I-35W bridge tragedy in August 2007, the percentage of bridges with problematic ratings has gone down somewhat over the past six years. Read more
Three significant demographic shifts
Suburban Growth → Central cities holding their own, but suburban population exploding
Suburban areas of the region have grown faster than the cities during
the past few decades; this growth is projected to continue. Read
more
More Persons Of Color → New immigrant
populations, youngest residents driving diversity
Since the 1990s, the number of Persons Of Color in the region has increased
250 percent. As a proportion of the population, Persons
of Color have increased from about 9 percent to almost 20 percent. Read
more
Aging Population → Aging of baby
boomers will profoundly affect our region's well-being
Increases in the proportion of persons over age 65, and over age 85,
stand out among the most significant changes in our region’s
population. Read
more
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