Columbus.

• Author: Smith, James C.
• Position: Economic outlook for Columbus, Indiana and Bartholomew County Indiana - Brief Article

In the decade from 1990 to 2000, Bartholomew County was one of the fastest growing counties in Indiana in terms of population. A 12 percent jump in the number of residents placed the county 26th overall out of 92 counties, and that rank rises to 20th if the exceptionally fast-growing counties around Indianapolis are excluded.

As Columbus and Bartholomew counties have attracted more people, this growth has brought economic diversification. That diversification should help restrain layoffs and unemployment as the state makes its way through the recession of 2001-2002.

In fact, we can point to four factors, all of which are working together to offer Bartholomew County communities some protection against the economic downturn.

First is the simple fact that the population is growing. That brings a double benefit. On one hand, growth brings more people, who bring more value in the form of their talents and more consumption expenditures to keep the dollars flowing. Along with the direct economic boost, population growth is an excellent indicator of an area's desirability as a place to live. If there are people moving in, it must mean they see good long-term job prospects, a good education system for their children and meaningful amenities in the community. All those things help the county weather a weak economy.

Second is the economic mix in Columbus and Bartholomew counties (see Figure 1). It is true that 40 percent of the jobs in the county are in the manufacturing sector, and manufacturing's predominance has not changed for many years. But employment in services industries grew 15 percent in the six years ending in 2000. Manufacturing employment grew only 5 percent. Within the services sector, much of the growth occurred in relatively high-paying fields. A 16 percent jump in health care jobs was accompanied by a 21 percent increase in engineering and management services. Engineering and management services...