Challenges & Opportunitiesin Rural Planning

Michael Stumpf, AICP, CEcD

R.A. Smith & Associates, Inc.

A Quick Overview

Population Decline

- Losing people- Losing jobs- Aging population- Losing services and resources- Health care and hospitals

Almost every small town on the plains

Population Growth

- Regional services- Employment- Retirement

Hays, KansasMitchell, South DakotaScottsbluff, Nebraska

Dickinson, North Dakota

Growth Magnets

- Higher education- Federal labs or installations- Tourism

Billings, MontanaManhattan, Kansas

Black Hills area, South Dakota

Oil and Gas Exploration

- Boom and bust cycles- Transient worker needs- Environmental issues

MontanaNorth DakotaSouth Dakota

WyomingNebraska

KansasColorado

Utah

Biotechnology – Corn Refining

- Growing demand for biofuels- High corn prices- Spin-off industry (meat to plastics)- Energy, trucking, railroads- Attracting employees- Overbuilding?- Changing technology

The Corn Belt:Iowa, Illinois, Indiana

Also:South Dakota, Nebraska,

Wisconsin, Minnesota,Missouri, Kansas

Wind Energy

- Nearly cost competitive- Wind is a fixed resource- Transmission requirements- Bird blenders- Neighbors’ objections

ColoradoWyoming

South DakotaIowa

Kansas

Railroads

Laramie, WyomingAlliance, Nebraska

Huron, South Dakota

- Congested ports- Track utilization- Car shortage

Manufacturing

- Access to markets- Access to labor- Low wage, low skill jobs- Overseas competition- Some stand-outs

Fort Dodge, IowaSidney, Nebraska

Brookings, South DakotaIdaho Falls, Idaho

Retailing

Wal-Mart on the Plains

312 stores in region

60 rural counties – 19%99 micropolitan – 32%

153 metropolitan – 49%

207 competitors(Shopko, Target, Kmart)

Tourism

- Character- Congestion- Cost of living- Community

Colorado mountain towns

Agriculture

- Consolidation and corporate farming- Crop Reserve Program- Support services- Agri-tourism

Cattle Range

- Environmental degradation- Tradition and livelihood- Recreation

ColoradoUtah

Wyoming

Housing

- Too few buyers- Construction and renovation dynamics- Inadequate infrastructure- “Free lot” strategy

Immigration

- Hispanic immigration- Courting immigrants

Lexington, NebraskaUlysses, Kansas

Fargo, North Dakota

Conflict

- Natives- Old-timer and new-comer expectations- Property rights- Social change and power shifts

Planning in Rural Places