if we were to examine the economy of northeast ohio from the points of view of an economist and a marketing guru, we might attempt to identify the "value proposition" that makes our economy unique, attractive to business, & capable of growth. for most of it's history, cleveland and the region have stood on two economic pillars. first, the steel industry. and second, arts & culture.
for most of the last 100 years, the industries critical to our region were those based on the production of steel & products of steel. during the same time period, cleveland developed an arts & culture community unmatched by similar cities. the orchestra, art museum, playhouse square, cleveland playhouse, blossom, beck center, community theatre, galleries, and on and on.
cleveland remains distinguished by a strong arts community. what has changed for our region is the industry that leads our growth potential. today, cleveland boasts a world class health care industry. along with health care spin-off industries that have the potential to land & thrive in cleveland.
as a region, we ought to invest in those resources that will enhance the two aspects of our economy that are world class and distinguish us [back to the value proposition] from other mature cities in the midwest: health care and arts & culture.
