#1 - The West is more than big cities and remote rural landscapes.
The vast majority of the West’s people live in urban areas. Some of its cities, such as Las Vegas and Phoenix, are among the nation’s fastest growing. At the same time, the region contains great expanses of open lands with very low population densities. These two facts can lead us to overlook a thriving middle ground where people are finding ways to enjoy the benefits of small-town living while having access to larger markets.
The map below shows metropolitan counties (those with over 50,000 residents) and counties within an hour’s drive of metropolitan areas in red. Counties in grey are rural by virtue of smaller populations and isolated due to lack of ready access to commercially viable airports.
Source: Public Lands Conservation and Economic Well-Being and in Prosperity in the 21st Century West: The Role of Protected Public Lands. Both are available from the Sonoran Institute.
Counties in orange are rural in population size but are functionally connected to larger cities by regular commercial airline service. Unlike much of the rural and isolated (grey) West, which is losing population and struggling economically, the rural and connected (orange) counties are experiencing strong population, employment and income growth, as the chart below shows.
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, 2004. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Information system (REIS CD-ROM). Washington, D.C.
The connected rural counties in orange have found ways to stay connected to larger, more dynamic markets. These economies are often trading on the quality of life associated with spectacular landscapes and small-town friendliness as a business advantage. Their populations are highly educated and their economies are diversified by regional norms.
Smaller communities can be known for their unique celebrations.
The stereotype of tourist boom towns does not accurately capture the breadth of the rural resurgence. Ski towns, for example, often appear to be resort communities with unaffordable housing and transient populations, but even in these places, people who once came only to play are staying to raise families, start businesses and retire.
Elsewhere in the connected rural West, a broad spectrum of communities are holding their own and creating new opportunities. Some began as county seats or military towns and are developing into regional service centers; others are emerging retirement towns that capture the energies of “downshifting” baby boomers and young retirees; and still others are university towns that are spinning off high-tech entrepreneurs.
Additional Resources
- Methods for categorizing the three Wests can be found in chapter three of Public Lands Conservation and Economic Well-Being and in Prosperity in the 21st Century West: The Role of Protected Public Lands. Both are available from the Sonoran Institute.
- Calvin Beale with the U.S. Department of Agriculture created what has become known as “Beale” codes showing counties along a rural-urban spectrum: www.prb.org/rfdcenter/USACountiesBealeCodes2003.pdf.
- John Cormartie at the U.S. Department of Agriculture has developed rural-urban commuting area codes for the entire country. See the following link for more information: www.ers.usda.gov/Data/RuralUrbanCommutingAreaCodes.