25 Things Economic Developers Need to Know This Week
The stories Dane thinks you need to see. May 15, 2025 edition.
Welcome to this week's issue of What Economic Developers Need to Know This Week, where we explore the evolving dynamics of our economy.
This week we have 25 tools, stories, graphics, charts and videos that I think you'll find informative, useful, inspiring, and perhaps even humorous. Some are economic development related directly, and some only indirectly. 🤔
If you're wondering what to do with the info in this newsletter, send something to your board members. It will make you look good!
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1) Economic Development and Developers in the News # 195 - Econ dev news from 77 economic development executives and organizations in 23 states.
2) Podcast 173 - From Possibilities to Reality: How to Save Your Small Town with Deb Brown - What 'we want it more like 1955' actually means.
3) Last Week: 27 New Econ Dev Jobs This Week - In 13 states, from $20,800 - $258,798.
4) Last week: 27 Things Economic Developers Need to Know This Week - The stories Dane thinks you need to see. May 8, 2025 edition.
Today's issue is brought to you by Sitehunt.
Sitehunt is the AI-powered platform transforming how economic developers manage site selection and respond to RFIs.
Whether you're chasing leads, showcasing inventory, or competing for big wins, Sitehunt gives you the intelligence and agility to move fast, impress prospects, and close deals. It’s not just smarter software — it’s how modern economic development gets done.
5) Top North America FDI destinations in 2024 by project number:
6) Trams are the absolute best transportation for cities. (Why do we call streetcars in the US?)
7) Custom brokers in Laredo, Texas help importers accurately classify and report goods to U.S. Customs and Border Protection and pay duties for their clients. This was dull, rote work in the heyday of free trade. Not so much anymore.
8) Why America should sprawl: The word has become an epithet for garish, reckless growth -- but to fix the housing crisis, the country needs more of it.
9) Inflation: The April CPI report came in softer than expected (that's a good thing):
10) Grocery prices declined (yay!):
11) Housing inflation remains elevated (boo):
