Rust Belt cities are losing large numbers of residents to Florida and Arizona, perhaps an unstoppable trend. Retiree migration accounts for a good portion of these numbers. The Twin Cities pulled 20,000 people from Minnesota and Wisconsin, but lost 44,000 to other states. Des Moines, meantime, attracted 40,000 Iowa residents, but lost over 1,000 nationwide. During the same period, Indianapolis drew 74,000 people statewide but only broke even at a national level. While Sunbelt cities draw migrants from around the country, including large numbers from California and New York, larger Rust Belt cities draw overwhelmingly from their home states and adjacent areas.Īn analysis of county-to-county migration data, based on IRS tax returns, shows that metro Columbus attracted nearly 67,000 people from other parts of Ohio between 20, while losing 28,000 people to the rest of the country. Such vibrancy is impressive, but a look behind the numbers shows that a qualitative difference exists between Rust Belt cities and Sunbelt boomtowns. Grand Rapids, Indianapolis, Madison, and Minneapolis each grew by more than 7 percent. During that period, Des Moines exploded by 12.9 percent and Columbus by more than 9 percent. Some Rust Belt cities are growing faster than the nation as a whole and, at times, approaching Sunbelt rates. These large cities are complemented by smaller success stories, including Iowa City Lafayette, Indiana and Traverse City, Michigan. Metro hubs like Columbus, Kansas City, Des Moines, Grand Rapids, Madison, and Minneapolis-St. But other cities within those states are booming. The Midwest and the northeastern Frost Belt are home to numerous stagnant and shrinking cities such as Flint, Michigan Youngstown, Ohio Rockford, Illinois Muncie, Indiana and Erie, Pennsylvania. But the Rust Belt’s urban resurgence disguises the reality that regional cities remain weak magnets for new residents on a national basis. Residents of Rust Belt states are migrating to larger cities that have emerged as centers of success in the modern economy. As the economy continues to adapt from industrial to service- and knowledge-based sectors, we’re witnessing another population change-this time, in the country’s former industrial heartland. America’s transition from an agricultural to an industrial economy resulted in a spatial shift in population, from rural to urban.
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