'High honor': Magazine ranks Tallahassee No. 1 in the nation for growing economy

TaMaryn Waters, Tallahassee Democrat

The Tallahassee Metropolitan Statistical Area ranked No. 1 in the nation for its growing economy, according to the “2023 Leading Metro Locations” report by Area Development magazine.

The publication, geared toward executives of large manufacturing companies and site selectors, compared more than 380 cities around the country and used a range of economic factors, such as unemployment rates, Gross Domestic Product ( GDP) and job growth in certain industries.

"It basically aggregates this data, analyzes it and then synthesizes this data," said Keith Bowers, director of the Tallahassee-Leon County Office of Economic Vitality. "It ranks us by metropolitan size, geographical territory and just overall ... This is a high honor for us to have scored as well as we did."

Here's how Tallahassee ranked:

  • No. 1 — Economic Strength Category in the U.S.

  • No. 2 — Mid-sized Metro Locations Category

  • No. 4 — South Atlantic Region Category

  • No. 9 — Overall metro locations compared to the rest of the U.S

Bowers said the publication's target audience represent a cross section of industries that may be looking to expand, relocate or explore opportunities. In addition, he said the report will be used as a recruiting tool by OEV in an effort to attract companies to the capital city.

According to the report, how cities and regions compare with one another depends a lot on the specific indicators tracked and how they are weighted.

"Generally speaking, though, some of the important factors include the local gross domestic product and how it’s trending, unemployment rates, what kinds of jobs are growing, how well the needs of employers are matching with what the labor market has to offer, and the activity in such hot sectors as high-tech manufacturing and R&D, and other occupations linked to science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)," the report said.

In a May 3 email, the Tallahassee/Leon County Planning, Land Management and Community Enhancement director said the rankings reflect leading metro areas poised for long-term growth.

"These metros are generally hubs of high-tech industry and have an affordable cost of living," said Artie White, who heads PLACE. "As always, I am proud of the work the OEV team does every day and I believe these rankings reflect their hard work and the great collaboration across the city of Tallahassee, Leon County, and the Blueprint Intergovernmental Agency."

In addition, Bowers told the Democrat that the private sector plays a major role because Tallahassee-based companies and others, such as Amazon with its new fulfillment center, have made major investments in Tallahassee and the surrounding areas.

"They have continued to create jobs at a very rapid pace. They have continued to focus on targeted industries, such as healthcare, manufacturing, transportation/logistics and applied sciences and professional services," Bowers said. "That focus has really helped our entire community move the needle."

Contact Economic Development Reporter TaMaryn Waters at tlwaters@tallahassee.com and follow @TaMarynWaters on X.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee, Florida ranked No. 1 in nation for its growing economy

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