Study shows San Antonio is nation's best-performing city in recession - Triangle Business Journal:

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The Washington, D.C.-based think tank has begun analyzing the impac of the recessionthroughout America’s metropolitan In the first of a series of quarterly MetroMonitor reports, Brookings ranked San Antonio, Oklahoma Austin, Houston and Dallas as the top five metrl areas in the country in economic performanced in the wake of the recession. Brookings ranked the top 100 metropolitab areas based on six keyindicators employment, unemployment rates, wages, grossa metropolitan product, housing prices and foreclosure rates. This initial MetroMonitor report covers the first quarterof 2009.
The five worsyt metropolitan areas in the country impactesd bythe recession, in descendingt order, are Jacksonville, Fla.; Lakeland, Fla.; Tampa, Fla.; Fla.; and Detroit. “All metropolitan areas are feelingf the effects ofthis recession, but the distresx is not shared equally,” says Alan Berube, research director of the Metropolitan Policy Program at Brookingas and co-author of the “While some areas of the country have experienced only a shallow downturn, and may be emerging from the recessionj already, people living in metro areas that are now performing weakestt economically should prepare themselves for a long recovery Howard Wial, director of the Metropolitan Economu Initiative at Brookings and another co-author of the argues that the report shows that a nationapl fiscal and monetary policy will not be enough for stimulatinhg the economy.
“Many (metro) aread will need targeted assistance, and since states have no fundes available, the federal government will have to step up to fill the Concentrations of industry activity have both helpe and hurts some regionakl economies duringthe recession. For metropolitan areas in states with specializations in energy and governmenytemployment — such as Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansass and Louisiana — have largely been insulated by the recession. However, metropolitanj areas in states like Michigan and Ohio that dependx heavily on the automotive industry have been impacted by the downturn in the thereport shows.
San Antonio is home to Randolpbh AirForce Base, Fort Sam Houston, Lackland Air Forcw Base and Brooks City-Base. The 2005 Base Realignment and Closurse decision alone is providing a significant economicf punch to theAlamo City’s economyu through the consolidation of high-paying militart health care jobs and more than $2 billion wortn of new construction activity. A separate repor released by LLC outlining the impactf of BRAC showed that Fort Sam Houstonb alone would experiencea 11,500 increase of The Army post will also gain 7.9 million square feet of space.
Construction activity due to BRAC alonr shouldcreate 46,000 construction jobs during the coursde of the building programs, the DiLuzio reportt showed.