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Yahoo Real Estate had an article which listed the top 10 cities for job growth. Here’s the list:

1. Huntsville, Alabama
2. Albuquerque, New Mexico
3. Washington, D.C.
4. Charlottesville, Virginia
5. Athens, Georgia
6. Olympia, Washington
7. Madison, Wisconsin
8. Austin, Texas
9. Flagstaff, Arizona
10. Raleigh, North Carolina

While energy and finance drove job growth in the past, this year’s list projected growth from other avenues:

Today, many cities are relying on government programs, universities and stalwart industries, such as health care, to bolster employment in a weak economy. Those factors appeared frequently when we assembled candidates for our 2009 Best Cities list, which focuses on places that have stable employment plus the talent to create new, well-paying positions. A robust job market makes these cities safe havens during the recession and will give them a head start toward growth when the recovery takes off.

I’m not so sure that I want to hang my potential job growth on government programs.  That’s exactly what’s driving the growth in Huntsville, our nation’s missile-defense hotbed, and D.C., where the government appears to be growing by the minute.  Charlottesville is dependent upon UVA, Norfolk Naval Base, and the U.S. Army’s Intelligence Center.  The state government employs half of Olympia’s workforce.  So that’s four out of the ten that are dependent on the government in one form or another.

What about growth in private sector jobs?  The only cities that talk about private sector growth are Madison (biotech) and Athens (manufacturing).  Sorry, but I wouldn’t call it growth if it’s funded by taxpayer dollars.  I think it’s shortsighted to rely on the government for creating jobs with tax dollars.  There’s an opportunity cost to the private sector in there somewhere.

What do you think?  Do I know what I’m talking about, or am I just a windbag?  Leave a comment (If you’re signed up with CommentLuv, you’ll get a free link back to a post on your blog).

Click here for the original article: Best Cities: It’s All About Jobs

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