How Does Brockville Compare to its Peers?

The University of Toronto's Martin Prosperity Institute studies what makes cities and regions economically successful. Some MPI members will be contributing to posts on the wiki and participating at Agenda Camp Brockville.

Brockville's Peers:

• Alma, Ontario
• Cornwall, Ontario
• Joliette, Quebec
• Midland, Ontario
• Orillia, Ontario
• Owen Sound, Ontario
• Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec
• Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Quebec
• Timmins, Ontario
• Val-d'Or, Quebec
• Woodstock, Ontario
• Gananoque, Ontario
• Smith Falls, Ontario
• Kingston, Ontario
• Ogdensburg-Massena, New York
• Watertown-Fort Drum, New York

A simple method was used to identify Brockville's peer regions. First, since Brockville is located in Ontario, our selection of comparison cities was narrowed by focusing only on cities found within Ontario's peer provinces and US states. To identify Ontario's peer regions we took half of Ontario's population in 2006 and then selected those provinces and states with a population greater than that value. Half Ontario's population in 2006 was 6,080,141. This produced a list of 1 other province and 16 states, for a total of 17 peer regions. Because the economic circumstances of smaller urban communities in places like California, Texas or Florida, and even more geographically proximate states such as Ohio and Pennsylvania, can differ so greatly, similarities and differences are much more difficult to issolate.

As a result, our analysis was confined to cities within only two of Ontario's peer regions, the province of Quebec and New York State. Next, we decided to choose cities within Ontario, Quebec and New York that were either of similar population size or within geographical proximity to Brockville. With New York City having a substantial influence over surrounding small communities, and Brockville being located on the Canada-US border, we chose Brockville's peers in New York based first on geographical proximity and second on population size. As a result, Brockville's peers in the US were identified as the communities of Ogdensburg-Massena and Watertown-Fort Drum. Brockville's peers in Ontario and Quebec were chosen based only on population size. The first five communities, based on population size, that are directly above and below the population of Brockville were chosen as its peers. These communities include: Alma, QC; Joilette, QC; Midland, ON; Orillia, ON; Owen Sound, ON; Rouyn-Noranda, QC; Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, QC; Timmins, ON; Val-d'Or, QC; and Woodstock, ON. Four additional cities were then also added due to their proximity to Brockville and importance within its geographic region. These cities include: Kingston, ON; Cornwall, ON; Gananoque, ON; and Smith Falls, ON. Together all of these cities will be used as Brockville's peers in deriving comparisons based on data gathered from Statistics Canada.

See future posts for indepth examinations on labour force characteristics, industry characteristics, education levels, population growth, and more.

The 3T Analysis

The 3 Ts (Technology, Tolerance and Talent) are part of a theory of economic growth that improves upon traditional models which emphasize companies or jobs or technology. The 3 Ts are a useful analytical tool and it is argues that each is a necessary but not sufficient condition to drive regional economic growth. 

The 3 Ts of regional economic development consist of: Technology, Tolerance, and Talent; leading indicators that reflect the potential for economic growth in a region. They are a useful analytical tool for regions to judge and benchmark themselves against peers. Past research has shown that regions that have long term success are those that have the right mix of technology, tolerance, and talent. It is not sufficient to focus on one T; success in the new economy requires that regions pay attention to all three as there is a strong codependence between them. The rationale for the 3Ts likes in what Richard Florida calls creative capital theory, the view that "regional economic growth is powered by creative people, who prefer places that are diverse, tolerant, and open to new ideas." 

Education & Human Capital (Talent)

An individual's educational attainment, or their “human capital”, is a major theme in narratives of economic growth. The level of human capital found within a community is now recognized as a significant component in understanding economic development and regional strengths. The works of individuals such as Jacob Mincer (1958), Gary Becker (1964), Robert Lucas (1988) and more recently, Ed Glaeser (2001) have demonstrated the impact that regions with high levels of educational attainment tend to have on higher rates of productivity and growth. 

On this measure, it appears as though Brockville ranks amongst the middle of its peer regions (Figure 1). However, it is important to recognize that the top three communities of Kingston, Ontario, Watertown-Fort Drum, New York and Ogdensburg-Massena, New York are not directly comparable to Brockville. These communities were included in the analysis due to their significance as university and college towns and as cross border communities in close geographical proximity to Brockville. As a result, they play a role in understanding the characteristics of the region and communities surrounding Brockville. With three post-secondary institutions and several government buildings located in Kingston, Ontario, including Queen's University, the Royal Military College of Canada and St. Lawrence College, the community naturally lends itself to having a greater number of individuals over the age of 25 with degrees above a Bachelor of Arts. Also, the cross border communities of Watertown-Fort Drum and Ogdensburg-Massena, New York are again important in terms of understanding the surrounding regions of Brockville, but are not directly comparable because the populations used to calculate their values are based on much larger regions, and not individual communities. This is because comparable US data at the same geographic level as Brockville was not available. While the numbers for these communities may give rise to slightly inflated values, they provide valuable insight into the characteristics of these communities. 

Once we control for and isolate these communities in our analysis, Brockville actually ranks quite well on this measure when compared to its other regional peers.

Technology 

The second indicator from the 3T Analysis is "technology." Great economists like Robert Solow, Robert Lucas, and Paul Romer, among others, have shown that technology is a key driving force behind economic growth. Technology improves communication between people and enhances both physical and cognitive productivity. Technology-intensive industries and occupations have grown over the past three decades. Regions that attract innovators, develop innovations, and turn them into marketable products are able to reap significant local benefits. 

The Tech Pole index is a measure that we use to valuate regional activity in technology industries and employment. It incorporates relative concentration and local share of North American employment in high-tech industries. 

As shown in the figure below, Brockville leads its peer regions on the Techpole Index. 

Tolerance: Openness & Diversity

The third "T" of economic development is tolerance. "Tolerance" is used as an indicator of openness to talent. A place open to groups that might be considered "outsiders:" gays and lesbians, immigrants, and artists, should also be more open to talented migrants. Further, openness to diversity indicates broader receptivity to new ideas, intellectural freedom, risk tolerance, and an entrepreneurial spirit. The overall tolerance ranking is based on four measures that reflect the openness and diversity of peer regions.

The four meaures that influence an overall tolerance ranking are: 1) the Bohemian Index, which compares the share of regional employment in artistic occupations against the North American share; 2) the Gay & Lesbian Index, which measures the share of a region's same sex marriage relative to the North American Average; 3) the Mosiac Index, or the percent of the population that is foreign born; and 4) the Integration Index, which uses neighbourhood and regional data to determine how racially mixed the peer regions are. Due to limited data availability, we were only able to assess Brockville's tolerance in terms of the Mosiac Index and the Integration Index.

When compared to its regional peers, Brockville (where "Brockville" is still understood as the "Greater Brockville Area") places third on the Mosaic Index ( 8.8% of the population is foreign born), which is an indicator that Canadian CMAs often do well on because of the large numbers of immigrants in Canada.

Secondly, the Integration Index is important as it tells us how well cultures are integrating within a region. Brockville is fourth in terms of the percentage of the population that is comprised of visible minorities (figure below). This is a positive signal that indicates it is receptive to its multicultural population and conducive to the integration of new immigrants.

This session was submitted by: VasilikiMPI.