The Department of Housing and Urban Development's State of the Cities 2000 report says growth in cities has been strong and sustained in high-tech and other jobs, business creation and homeownership. It points out that during the economic expansion, wage growth in cities has surpassed that of their surrounding suburbs.
Central cities are the major cities in a metropolitan statistical area.
The New Economy driven by high-tech job growth. The New Housing Challenge of housing costs rising faster than inflation, creating a record shortage of affordable housing. The New Demography of an aging and more diverse population and a declining middle class. In these times of good economic news and budget surpluses, it makes sense to invest in cities to help them create more jobs, more businesses, more affordable housing, and increased homeownership. A total of 2 million high-tech jobs were created throughout the nation between 1992 and 1997, the report found.