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cover story TheinWorst Cities Which to Live I n years gone by, Americans living in southern states flocked to places in the north to take advantage of the job opportunities found in the automotive, steel, and manufacturing industries. Now that those industries and the jobs associated with them are gone, migration is reversing and many people are leaving the north, its cold weather, unemployment, and harsh living conditions. Still, some will stay to perhaps find new ways to produce income. Obviously, there are many changes under way. As the population shifts, some cities may almost disappear, while others will continue to grow and expand. Only time will tell. Detroit, Michigan Camden, New Jersey Flint, Michigan Cleveland, Ohio Still victim to violent crimes, unemployment, and foreclosed properties, the tide seems to be turning for Detroit as the price of housing is rising and foreclosures are declining. New investment is being made in the downtown area, which will bring new opportunities for employment and income to the area. New statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau identified Camden as the most impoverished city in the United States, with 42.5 percent of residents living below the poverty line. The city has lost a third of its population since the 1950s, and approximately one-third of what's left is under the age of 18. Flint has been demolishing homes as the city shrinks from residents leaving in search of jobs. Only Detroit has a higher migration rate. Flint ranks third-worst for violent crime, behind Detroit and Memphis, and has become a perfect symbol of the collapse of the U.S. auto industry and industrial cities in the past 20 years. Only Detroit and Flint have had a faster exodus rate than Cleveland during the past few years. The loss of manufacturing jobs has played a very important role in the shrinkage and is still draining the city. Cleveland is plagued by high crime, brutally frigid and unpredictable winters, and a mass migration of residents. The city also ranks in the top third of all metro areas for foreclosure rates. Stockton, California Dayton, Ohio Buffalo, New York Toledo, Ohio With jarring unemployment and violent crime rates, the city of Stockton suffers an unemployment average of 18.5 percent in the metro area. This explains why much of the city is in foreclosure (one in 14 homes). Tragically, this led to the city of Stockton proceeding with Chapter 9 bankruptcy. Dayton is another city wiped out by the continuously declining auto industry. A substantial number of people left and are still leaving because NCR Corporation (ATM and cash register manufacturer) moved its headquarters to Georgia, taking more than 12,000 jobs with it. This Snowbelt city is still the second-largest in New York state, but the population has declined more than 50 percent during the past half-century as the industrial base waned. Today's residents are faced with low income, aging houses, and a crime-ridden city. Job growth has been anemic in Toledo, and residents are leaving in large numbers. Its net migration rate is the nation's fourth highest behind Detroit, Flint, and Cleveland. The M Report | 17