“[Alec’s] regional quantitative research is brilliant and has been instrumental in HIT’s initiative based investment programs in Detroit, New York, Boston, and elsewhere.”
– Sondra Albert, Chief Economist, AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust
Evaluation of the Pittsburgh Economy
Conducted a comprehensive, data-driven analysis of the Pittsburgh economy and its commercial core. To do this, conducted extensive research of public and private data sources, and used the IMPLAN model to develop a custom input-output model of the city economy based on an aggregation of 22 zip codes. The analysis sought to describe the city economy, identify industry sectors that appear to be more concentrated in the city relative to the nation, understand which industry sectors have made the strongest (or weakest) post-recession contributions to the Pittsburgh economy, and identify industry sectors that that are projected to have the greatest (or least) job growth between 2012 and 2022. The analysis used or developed the following industry-specific measures: 1) output, wages, small business income, other income, indirect business taxes, employment, and exports, 2) economic multipliers, 3) location quotients (LQs), 4) shift-share analysis, and 5) long-run employment growth projections. Economic data was meshed with a broad range of demographic data to fully understand the complexities, opportunities, and challenges for the city.
Evaluation of the Economies of New York City and its Five Constituent Boroughs
To support ongoing discussions related to affordable housing and economic development, worked with the AFL-CIO’s Housing Investment Trust (“HIT”) to fully describe the city and borough economies, identify industry sectors that appear to be more concentrated in the city relative to the nation, and understand which industry sectors have made the strongest (or weakest) post-recession contributions to the New York economy between 2007 and 2013. The analysis used the following measures for 536 industry sectors: 1) output (sales), wages, small business income, other income, indirect business taxes, employment, and exports, 2) economic multipliers that measure the supply-chain and consumption-driven linkages between industry sectors and the economy, 3) location quotients (LQs) that measure the degree of specialization for each industry in the city and borough economies relative to the national economy, and 4) shift-share analysis that measures changes in industry employment between 2007 and 2013, and distills those changes into national, industry, and local effects. The latter measures the change in industry employment that cannot be attributed to national trends.
Evaluation of Economic Specialization in the City of Portland
For the Portland Development Commission and the City of Portland, identified the largest, most concentrated, and fastest-growing industrial sectors within the City of Portland. The analysis used the following industry-specific measures of the local economy: 1) location quotients (LQs), 2) value added, 3) the amount of value added that is exported, 4) employment and wages, and 5) shift-share analysis. The City used the information in developing specific economic development strategies. The analysis also supported ongoing conversations regarding policy choices related to economic development, and to provide for the first time results that are specific to the City of Portland and its commercial core.
http://www.portlandonline.com/portlandplan/index.cfm?a=346103&c=51427
Evaluation of the Detroit Economy and Estimation of the Economic and Fiscal Impacts of Proposed Development Projects
Conducted a comprehensive, data-driven analysis of the economy of the City of Detroit, and measured the economic and fiscal impacts of proposed developed projects in the city. To do this, conducted extensive research of public and private data sources and used the IMPLAN model to develop a custom input-output model of the city economy based on an aggregation of 33 zip codes. The analysis sought to describe the city economy, identify industry sectors that appear to be more concentrated in the city relative to the nation, and understand which industry sectors have made the strongest (or weakest) post-recession contributions to the Detroit economy. The analysis used or developed the following industry-specific measures: 1) output, wages, small business income, other income, indirect business taxes, employment, and exports, 2) economic impact multipliers, 3) location quotients (LQs), and 4) shift-share analysis. In addition, using the custom input-output model of the city, measured the economic and fiscal impacts associated with major economic development projects including new multi-family housing, hospital, and automobile manufacturing.
Clackamas County Cluster Analysis
For Clackamas County, identified ten key business clusters in the county and described the county’s role in the Portland Metro regional economy. The analysis used the following four steps to identify county clusters: (1) define the region, (2) identify key industries using location quotients, (3) define key clusters, and (4) comprehensively describe each cluster using economic metrics such as output, value added (or gross regional product), wages, small business income, jobs, exports, and economic multipliers that measure the linkages of each cluster to other industry sectors in the local and regional economy. The County used the analysis for its on-going economic development efforts, and to develop strategies for strengthening the county economy.
Analysis of State and Regional Economies in Massachusetts
For the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (“HIT”), provided an analysis of the Massachusetts economy to support ongoing conversations related to economic development in the state. For this analysis, the Massachusetts economy was divided into five regions according to the Massachusetts Emergency Medical Service Regions. The analysis first describes the five regional economies, and then identifies the biggest, most concentrated, and fastest-growing industry sectors in each region. The identification of industry concentration and performance is an interim step to learning about each region’s strengths and weaknesses in supporting desirable economic activity, and to making policy choices that retain and enhance the strengths and remediate the weaknesses.