Top 7 Midwest Cities
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- City/MSA
- State
- Population
- Overall
Rank
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 Ranking 1st among the 100 Leading
Locations overall, the small Indiana city of
Columbus also led Area Development's Top 20
Midwest Cities and Top 25 Small Cities rankings. Among small cities, Columbus
placed 3rd in "Economic Strength" factors,
4th in "Prime Workforce Growth," and 5th
for its "Recession-Busting" indicators.
Columbus is the headquarters of Fortune
500 diesel engine and power generator
maker Cummins Inc., which employs more
than 7,000 locally. Japanese driveshaft manufacturer NTN employs 1,700 in
Columbus, auto emission control and
exhaust systems maker Faurecia maintains
production and North American R&D
there, and Dorel Juvenile Group makes
child safety seats and handles R&D in
Columbus. The city has averaged one corporate
expansion announcement a month
since 2010, creating 1,840 jobs, and current
employment figures there are the third highest
on record. Columbus had the
nation's 4th-highest GDP growth in 2010
(the most recent figures available), and
though it's a one-county MSA with a population
of about 77,000, its GDP is greater
than that of 37 countries.
Among the significant 2011 headlines,
Japanese auto components maker Sunright
America announced plans to create 100
jobs, and Cummins announced an $18 million
investment with 600 new jobs at its
headquarters and tech center. Columbus
was recognized in February by the Christian
Science Monitor as the "top city for job
growth," the AARP last fall put it among the
top 10 "Affordable Cities," and its strong collection
of prominent architecture ranks 6th
in the United States (the top five cities with
strong collections of prominent architecture
are much larger).
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- 2.
- Columbia
- MO
- 172,786
- 10
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 Columbia placed 2nd in the Top 20
Midwest Cities, with solid performance in
most of the metrics studied. It also ranked
2nd among the Top 25 Mid-Size Cities for
its "Recession-Busting" indicators, and 5th
for its "Economic Strength" factors among
this group. Employment numbers were
respectable throughout the recent recession
and really took off in the past year. The city
has maintained a jobless rate well below the
state average for years.
Only to the flagship campus of University of
Missouri but also to Stephens College and
Columbia College, plus campuses of a few
more institutions. Major industrial sectors
include life sciences, human and animal
health, and information technology. Two
significant insurance operations also employ
more than a thousand people apiece.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
maintains a large presence in Columbia, and
the veteran-focused sector also includes the
VA Mortgage Center, which last year landed
state incentives to support the addition of as
many as 300 jobs.
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 Dubuque had an enviable employment picture before the most recent recession hit, and afterwards, too. In fact, its five-year change in the jobless rate is among the nation's 10 best, and throughout the downturn, its share of citizens out of work was significantly lower than average. It helps to have a diverse economic base. John Deere's Dubuque Works manufacturing operation is the biggest local employer, but the top 15 also includes an IBM facility, Eagle Window & Door, Prudential Retirement, health care IT's McKesson Corp. and printer Quad/Graphics. Hormel opened an $80 million food products plant there in 2010.
The successes of Dubuque are certainly no secret. It was second place among the 2012 City Cultural Diversity Awards from the National League of Cities, placed 15th among small metros on the Milken Institute's 2011 Best-Performing Cities Index, was one of the 100 Best Communities for Young People named in 2011 by America's Promise Alliance, and was among Fast Company's Top 10 Smartest Cities on the Planet in 2011. It also has been named an All-America City.
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- 4.
- Holland-Grand Haven
- MI
- 263,801
- 24
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- 5.
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Waterloo-Cedar Falls
- IA
- 167,819
- 29
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 The Iowa community of Ames ranked 6th
among Area Development's Top 20 Midwest
Cities and 30th among the 100 Leading
Locations. Ames placed 15th for its "Prime
Workforce Growth" among the Top 25
Small Cities.
Iowa State University is the top employer
in Ames and also a prime draw for investment.
The Iowa Department of
Transportation supports numerous jobs, as
do local healthcare providers and the federal
government's Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service, while the manufacturing
sector is represented by such names as
Sauer-Danfoss, 3M, Becker Underwood, and
Barilla.
Relocating and expanding businesses have invested $200 million and created
1,000 jobs in the past five years.
TheAtlanticCities.com this year named Ames
the 25th "Best Place for New College
Grads," while Where to Retire ranked it the
8th "Best Place to Retire." It was
NewGeography.com's 56th "Best Small City
for Job Growth" in 2012, and the tech sector
will note that in 2011 Forbes ranked
Ames 13th
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LEADING LOCATIONS FOR 2012 RESOURCES
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