Quasi-Experimental Analysis of Targeted Economic Development Programs: Lessons from Florida

Evaluation of the local employment impacts of enterprise zones: A critique

“…On other measures, Papke (1994) found that a US state programme had reduced numbers of local unemployed people by 19%, Gobillon et al (2010) found that French zones increased the exit rate from unemployment into a job by 3% per semester for local residents, and Rich and Stoker (2010) found that US federal empowerment zones reduced unemployment in one-half of the cities they evaluated. On the other hand, Oakley and Tsao (2006) found that US empowerment zones had no impact on local unemployment while Rogers and Tao (2004) detected no statistically significant impact of Florida small city zones on the unemployed-to-population ratio.…”

“…Modest increases in zone employment in five of six cities and reductions in zone unemployment in three of six cities, but impacts not statistically significant. Rogers and Tao (2004) USA: Florida, 9 zones in small cities…”

Universities as Anchor Institutions: Economic and Social Potential for Urban Development

“…This methodology has been used occasionally in studies of regions and economic development (Drucker & Goldstein, 2007 ;Rogers & Tao, 2004 ). At its core, a quasi-experimental study allows for the measurement of the impact of a particular "treatment" (a higher education anchor institution) on some outcome of a city (Campbell, Stanely, & Gage, 1966 ).…”

Neighborhood Effects on Crime and Youth Violence: The Role of Business Improvement Districts in Los Angeles

“…Despite large-scale, government-funded, community economic-development (CED) efforts targeted at areas of concentrated economic disadvantage (e.g., enterprise zones, empowerment zones, community-development block grants), there have been few defined success stories (Boarnet, 2001). Indeed, underemployment, poor housing, and youth violence remain a stable fact in many inner-city communities (Teitz, 1987;Porter, 1997;Gottlieb, 1997;Bushway and Reuter, 2002;Boarnet and Bogart, 1996;McGahey, 1986;Rogers and Tao, 2004;Spencer and Ong, 2004).…”