Struggles of growing Missouri mirror that of rest of country

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Missourians are divided, and sometimes ambivalent, about whether their towns are developing in ways that maintain the quality of life and character they cherish, a report shows.

The 83-page report, "Growth in the Heartland: Challenges and Opportunities for Missouri," was released Sunday by The Brookings Institution Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy in Washington.

It is the result of numerous interviews with political and civic leaders, educators, regional planners and neighborhood leaders. It was paid for the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation in Kansas City.

A formal presentation of the report was planned for today in Kansas City, said Laura Loyacono, foundation spokeswoman.

No particular goal

"We weren't looking for anything in particular, other than no one had ever taken a look at the new census data in a comprehensive way," she said. "We are really interested in helping Missouri to remain competitive, and in particular helping the Kansas City area."

With two bustling metropolises, numerous fast-growing suburbs and swathes of open countryside, Missouri reflects the best of life in the heartland, the report said. And yet, it also faces the challenge of balancing a tight budget with increased demand for social services.

The state's population grew 9.3 percent to 5.5 million people between 1990 and 2000, according to U.S. Census data. The rate was double that of the 70s and 80s, placing Missouri in the middle ranks of states.

Once-rural counties collaring Kansas City and St. Louis are now home to emigres seeking easy country living.

In southwest Missouri, Springfield and Branson are melding into an Ozarks metropolis, with U.S. 65 looking more like an urban expressway than a mountain trail. Subdivisions are springing up along U.S. 63 connecting Columbia and Jefferson City, and a town in between, Ashland, is embracing zoning to buffer itself.

But the growth has not been without pain, the report showed.

Missouri shed 55,000 jobs between July 2001 and July 2002, losing about 10 percent of the positions it had gained in the previous decade, the report said.

The pattern of growth also imposes significant costs on communities and taxpayers, the report said. Areas that were once rich cropland or lined by trees have given way to roads, subdivisions and schools.

"The state's widespread scatter of residential development, retail centers and fast-food outlets is gradually effacing the farm traditions, rural scenery and small-town atmosphere that connects the state to its roots," the report said.

Missouri has much work to do if it is going to continue to prosper. Suggestions in the report include:

-- Establishing an information and analytic base to identify unfolding growth trends and support better policy responses.

-- Rethinking transportation and infrastructure policy.

-- Reviewing the state/local tax system.

"The state should ensure its tax and fiscal structures encourage -- rather than discourage -- sound land-use outcomes," the report said.

-- Protecting rural Missouri and crafting livable regions.

-- Seeking regional solutions by promoting cooperation among the many localities across Missouri.