Quad Cities Cooperate Regionally

Regional cooperation is easier said than done. That was the message in my weekend article on regionalism in economic development. Some areas are making headway in this area.

Take a look at the Quad City area, which includes parts of both Illinois and Iowa. The "region" in this case includes Moline and Rock Island, Illinois and Davenport and Bettendorf, Iowa. For many years, people have had a sense of regional identity because of the cities' shared economic base, the Mississippi River and other factors. The Quad Cities has been working at regionalism for sometime. The road has not always been smooth, but economic development leaders from the area say that regionalism is working.

What I like most about the Quad Cities situation is that it not only embodies inter-city cooperation, but it contains interstate cooperation. I would urge more EDO's to move in this direction. Cincinnati and northern Kentucky understand this. So does Kansas City, Missouri and Kansas City, Kansas. Many other areas across the country are also tapping the advantages of regional approaches that cross state lines.

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