By Eugene T. Lowe
December 9, 2002

Rochester (NY) Mayor William A. Johnson invited mayors, urban experts, university professors, foundation representatives, and the media to his city November 12 and 13 to discuss the policy issues and challenges of mid-size cities. The meeting, or conversation, was titled, "The mid-size City: Exploring Its Unique Place in Urban Policy", and co-hosted by Partners for Livable Communities and Cornell University. Staff from the Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities also attended the meeting.

mid-size cities are defined as a central city with a population of 100,000 to 300,000 located in a regional consolidated metropolitan statistical area (CMSA) or a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) of about one million people. The two-day conversation began and ended with the conviction that there is a "uniqueness about being 'mid-size' that calls for a new identity, a new awareness, a new consciousness and a new partnership among these special places."

In a newspaper article, Johnson said, "I think mid-size cities are overlooked and I think there are a lot of best practices that occur in mid-size cities that don-t get picked up nationwide." Participants echoed Johnson's remarks throughout the meeting. The nation's largest cities and many smaller cities are the focus of most urban policy, while mid-size cities are often overlooked. Many participants felt that there is little research or national or state policy initiatives for mid-size cities. In the same newspaper article that quoted Johnson, Boise Mayor H. Brent Coles said, "We-ve had our challenges when we've engaged the federal government for grants on all kinds of issues."

With the general position that mid-size cities face challenges and have potential that are worth exploring, the meeting concentrated discussions around four issues: defining a mid-size city, regionalism and smart-growth, economic/community development and governance. Each issue was organized around the presentation from a participant, followed by a discussion of the issue in small groups. The presenters included: Cornell Professor William Goldsmith (defining mid-size cities), Bill Fulton, Editor/Publisher of California Planning and Development Report (regionalism and smart growth), Bob McNulty, President of Partners for Livable Communities (economic and community development), and Peter Harkness, Editor/Publisher of Governing Magazine (governance). Small groups of the participants also explored future activities for mid-size cities.

While the group did not come to a final agreement on how further collaboration between mid-size cities will take place, there were a number of suggestions such as a request be made that some type of entity be organized both in the Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities or that there should be the possible creation of a stand alone entity for mid-size cities.

Other mayors attending the Rochester conversation in addition to Mayors Johnson and Coles included: Erie Mayor Richard Filippi, Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson, Jr., and Grand Rapids Mayor John H. Logie. Kodak CEO Daniel Carp spoke at a dinner for the participants. His remarks focused on the challenges of and opportunities for mid-size cities in the world economy. In the concluding lunch, Neal Peirce, a nationally known syndicated columnist, summarized the key points developed during the Rochester conversation on mid-size cities.