Upstate Metros See Major Increase In National Performance Index
January 28, 2013
ANDERSON, SPARTANBURG, GREENVILLE, SC – January 28, 2013 – The three major metros that make up the Upstate – Anderson, Spartanburg and Greenville – all recently got strong rankings from the Milken Institute’s Best-Performing Cities Index.
These numbers illustrate the vitality of our region’s urban areas, said Hal Johnson, the president and chief executive officer of the Upstate SC Alliance.
The Milken Institute ranks metropolitan areas by how well they are creating and sustaining jobs as well as economic growth. The components include job, wages and salary, and technology growth. In most years, these give a good indication of the underlying structural performance of regional economics.
According to Milken, the Greenville metro area, which includes Mauldin and Easley, jumped more than 60 spots from number 113 in the country to number 52 amongst large metro areas and was 17th overall in one-year job growth.
Spartanburg moved up more than 70 spots from 181st overall to 108 in the rankings. It ranked ninth in the Biggest Gainers category; second in one-year relative high-tech GDP growth and 20th in Job Growth Percentage Between May 2011 and May 2012.
Anderson, saw its rank among small market metros go from 141 to 127 and was ranked 19th for 5-Year Relative High-Tech GDP Growth (2006-2011) and 10th in one-year relative high-tech GDP growth.
Our largest cities are being recognized for both their quality-of-life and the quality of their leadership, Johnson said. This recognition is one of the facts that helps us sell the Upstate to the rest of the world as a great place to live and work. It’s nice when someone else reinforces our message.
About the Upstate SC Alliance
The Upstate SC Alliance is a public/private regional economic development organization designed to market and brand the Upstate of South Carolina. The Upstate represent the commerce-rich northwestern corner of South Carolina, including the I-85 corridor and the Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson metropolitan area. Additional information is available through the Alliance’s web site, www.upstateSCalliance.com.
