Gay rights could pay
big dividends
By RICHARD FLORIDA
and GARY GATES, Daily News, November 26, 2006
New York City -- Some New
Yorkers take New Jersey for granted. Sure, it's a great place to go to the
beach, shop at Ikea or see a football game. But take people, money and
buzz away from the Big Apple? It'll never happen.
Yet the Garden State may finally be on its way to turning the tables on its big
brother -- thanks to, of all things, a court decision.
Last month, of course, New Jersey's Supreme Court paved the way for giving
same-sex partners equal rights, giving lawmakers 180 days to rewrite marriage
laws to either include same-sex couples or create a new system of civil unions
for them.
This will be a big deal -- not just for same-sex couples, but for New Jersey's
economy.
Why? Because, despite some rumblings in Albany, New York is likely to be
years away from allowing same-sex marriage or civil unions. That will give
Jersey a serious competitive advantage in attracting gay couples and the
economic benefits associated with their calling a place home.
A forthcoming study by UCLA's Williams Institute finds that revenue from
weddings and wedding tourism alone (if the Jersey legislature approves marriage,
not civil unions) would add nearly $103 million per year in business to the
state for at least the next few years.
But the economic impact could go way beyond that. Our research on what
makes cities and regions grow shows that urban economic vitality today turns on
openness to new ideas, new people and different lifestyles. Artistic,
technological and cultural innovators and the more than 40 million workers who
are part of what we call "the creative class" are drawn to places that are
diverse and tolerant.
And when they settle somewhere, these people, who tend to have disposable income
to spend in restaurants, bars and coffee shops, attract more of each other and
fuel all kinds of economic activity.
Yes, Manhattan has long been seen as a powerful beacon of tolerance and a magnet
of artistic and cultural innovation. That's what enabled the city's rise
and resurgence as a world center of not just finance but art, design, fashion
and entertainment.
But success has also brought its costs. Housing and rents have
skyrocketed, and a growing numbers of the foot soldiers of the creative class
have been forced out of Manhattan. Now, people are getting priced out of
Park Slope, Williamsburg and Astoria, too. Neighborhoods are in a quiet
contest, jockeying to be open, vibrant and affordable alternatives in which this
creative class can live and work.
As we speak, much of the shift has benefited Brooklyn, the new creative hot spot
of New York. But what about the next center? Could theaters, music
clubs and Internet startups cluster in Jersey City or Newark?
With its coming leap ahead of New York on gay rights, the smart money just may
have moved to New Jersey.
Florida is author of "Rise of the Creative Class." Gates is
author of "The Gay and Lesbian Atlas."
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