Small towns across rural America may be on the cusp of an economic renaissance as remote and hybrid office models become a permanent fixture in workplace culture and high-speed internet access continues to expand.

The Daily Yonder reports that community leaders of Mexico, Missouri, hope to turn the Rust Belt town of 11,500 people into an attractive hub for startup companies, small businesses and remote workers seeking to relocate from urban regions. However, city planners must carefully address several obstacles to ensure that any potential growth is sustainable in the long term.

Mexico’s Chamber of Commerce identified the challenging need for shared office spaces or co-working spaces to house smaller operations seeking to relocate to the city or start from the ground up. A shortage of affordable housing also remains a difficult obstacle for small-town markets as suburban developers can’t expect the same profit margins offered in even mid-sized locales.

According to author Chris Shipley, the “dual challenge of talent attraction and talent retention” is a deeper problem than any quantitative economic factor alone. While tech founders and employees may want to relocate to welcoming communities where they can raise their families, any attempt to impose changes on a city without community input is “a recipe for disaster and projects that generally wilt over time,” hence the need for thoughtful economic development and strategic planning.

To read more, go here: https://dailyyonder.com/does-the-future-of-work-open-a-new-growth-horizon-for-small-towns-rural-remote-work/2022/04/19/