Here you go Yukonjack from your beloved Fox News complete with link
http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/ne...drawing-notice/#ixzz1uV5R3gsG?test=latestnews
Dayton, Ohio The corner of East Third Street and Bell in Daytons East End offers a view of what happens when the American Dream leaves town.
Paints peels off the wood siding of vacant homes. Feral cats roam among the overgrown weeds and ivy that have overtaken a crumbling parking lot. A graffiti-covered restaurant sits in a state of decay. In the surrounding neighborhood homes stand empty, windows covered by plywood and No Trespassing signs stapled to the front doors.
The East End is one of many neighborhoods throughout the city, and the Rust Belt as a whole, that have fallen on hard times in the wake of the population loss and the departure of manufacturing jobs.
Yet, detectable too, are rumblings of new life.
Less than a quarter mile west of East Third and Bell sits a Latino owned grocery and womens clothing shop; farther down is a law office that advertises in Spanish; a few blocks from that is Taqueria Mixteca, a Mexican restaurant which overflows with customers during lunch.
These stores make up a small but growing Latino community in Dayton, attracted by cheap housing, lenient immigration enforcement, and a city initiative meant to boost its population, and its economy, by welcoming immigrants. Dayton's innovative immigration initiative --which is already having an impact-- is being closely followed as a potential model other Rust Belt communities.
The city has been losing residents for decades with big companies like GM leaving the area, said Francisco Peláez Diaz, a Hispanic Missionary pastor at Daytons College Hill Community Church and one of the founders of Welcome Dayton, the municipal initiative to attract immigrants.
What is happening is that these immigrants are repopulating the city, added Peláez Diaz, who immigrated to the United States from Mexico in 2006. What many people are doing is coming, buying vacant houses and fixing them up because housing is very affordable in Dayton.
Gradual Decline and Then a Devastating Blow
After World War II, Dayton thrived as one of the countrys manufacturing hubs, along with cities like Detroit and Buffalo. Daytons population rose 15.7 percent between 1940 and 1950 and another 7.6 percent in the next decade, according to the U.S. Census.
However, as more and more businesses left for cheaper, non-union labor in the Sun Belt and overseas in the 1970s and 80s, Daytons population began to hollow out. The city saw a drastic decrease over the last 40 years, going from 243,601 residents in 1970 to 141,527 in 2010 a 41.6 percent decrease.
I think what youll find is that other states and cities are reacting to a perceived problem instead of being proactive
- Mayor Gary Leitzell
The citys economic plight was epitomized by the departure of its signature companies in the last decade. NCR, which opened its doors as the National Cash Register Company in Dayton in 1884, pulled up its stakes and moved to Atlanta in 2009. GM closed the doors of its enormous Moraine Assembly plant in December 2008 leaving behind 2,400 jobs.
After GM left it was like a triple effect. said Patricia Rickman, a former GM employee and the chair of Daytons Southwest Priority Board. All the other factories started laying off, closing up and leaving town,
It was really devastating to this city, she added.
As businesses and manufacturing left, the inevitable happened: Unemployment and home foreclosure rates climbed. Currently 10.3 percent of Daytons citizens are unemployed over two percent higher than the national average, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The psychology of the local person in Dayton now seems to be that they are very down on themselves, said Daytons Mayor Gary Leitzell,
Banking on Immigrants to Turn the Tide
With a vanishing population and more and more vacant homes, the city saw a solution where other states and towns saw a problem: immigrants.
Ive always said that if you want to get rich in America you back any immigrant off the boat because they have the work ethic to succeed, Leitzell said.
As the debate over immigration took center stage with the introduction of hardline immigration laws in states like Arizona, Alabama and Georgia, Dayton quietly bucked the trend last October when it adopted the Welcome Dayton initiative. The plan involves ideas to help immigrant start small businesses, integrate into the local government and gain access to certain heath and social services.
The plan started when the citys Human Relations Council decided to look into rumored unfair housing practices plaguing citys Latinos residents. From the study emerged Welcome Dayton, the initiative aimed at bringing immigrants to Dayton to start small businesses, fix up homes and make Dayton a more diverse community.
The things these immigrants here are bringing are good things, Peláez Diaz said. They are rebuilding houses, they are hard working people, theyre family oriented and theyre bringing energy to the city.
Peláez Diaz said that the initiative is multi-faceted. With business development the plan aims to revamp the strip of East Third Street and help start up immigrant-owned businesses. Other goals are to increase immigrant participation in local government and help smooth the way for both immigrants and refugees to access community and health services.
The idea with the initiative is to create an atmosphere and environment where people helping these immigrants can optimize their resources, said Tom Wahlrab, Welcome Daytons chairperson.
Welcome Dayton Key Points
Business & Economic Development
- Identify & support a business district for immigrants
- Reduce barriers in opening businesses
Local Government & Justice System
- Improve language interpreter capabilities
- Increase immigrant participation in local government
- Increase trust between communities and law enforcement
- Overcome language barriers in court system
Social & Health Services
- Eliminate barriers to services due to language and cultural differences
- Review all laws that create unnecessary barriers for immigrants
Besides Latinos, Dayton has also attracted a large population of Ahiska Turks as well as a burgeoning refugee communities from countries like Iraq and Burundi.
Welcome Dayton is viewed used as a potential model for cities facing a similar plight, and is helping to change the perception of Dayton as a downbeat town to one on the move. Earlier this year Wahlrab spoke to Global Detroit, a network of organizations and people that want to revive the Motor Citys economy through immigration.
Weve been at it a lot longer, weve attracted a lot more money, said Steve Tobocman of Global Detroit. But I believe there is a certain elegance and opportunity in the plan that Dayton has put together. Theyve done certain things so profoundly right that I think we have a lot to learn from it.
Using Immigrants to Attract Immigrants
Juan Urbieta is one of Dayton's immigrant success stories.
Born in Guanajuato, Mexico, Urbieta came to the U.S. at the age of 14 in the trunk of car. He spent his youth moving around Texas, building condominiums before following work to Dayton. In Dayton he met his late wife and decided to put down roots.
When I came here in [1986] there were almost no Hispanic people, Urbieta said. They didnt even know what a tortilla or a hot pepper was.
Urbieta gained legal residency in 1988 and a few years later gained his citizenship. In that time, he saved up his money and built up his construction business.
More than 20 years later, the stocky man with a fleeting resemblance to actor Luis Guzmán may seem a little out of place in the Midwest city with his cowboy boots, pencil-thin mustache and thick accent, but he has become a well-known name in the community. And his company, Urbieta Construction, has rebuilt homes from the East End to the surrounding suburbs.
People come here because they want to find the American Dream, Urbieta said. As an immigrant you have to have goals, you have to plan them and you have to go for them.
It appears that immigrants are following Urbietas lead and making their way to Dayton. In 2006 the total foreign-born population of the city was 22,461 out of 838,940 total residents. Six years later, Daytons immigrant community numbers 29,478 out of 841,310 total residents, according to the Migration Policy Institute (MPI).
While other cities in the Rust Belt, such as Detroit, Buffalo and Cleveland also have seen an uptick in their foreign-born population, the impact on Dayton has been more significant because of its smaller population.
Theyre not real big numbers but for a small population it is still very sizeable, said Jeanne Batalova, a demographer with the MPI. It definitely helps out.
http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/ne...drawing-notice/#ixzz1uV5R3gsG?test=latestnews
Dayton, Ohio The corner of East Third Street and Bell in Daytons East End offers a view of what happens when the American Dream leaves town.
Paints peels off the wood siding of vacant homes. Feral cats roam among the overgrown weeds and ivy that have overtaken a crumbling parking lot. A graffiti-covered restaurant sits in a state of decay. In the surrounding neighborhood homes stand empty, windows covered by plywood and No Trespassing signs stapled to the front doors.
The East End is one of many neighborhoods throughout the city, and the Rust Belt as a whole, that have fallen on hard times in the wake of the population loss and the departure of manufacturing jobs.
Yet, detectable too, are rumblings of new life.
Less than a quarter mile west of East Third and Bell sits a Latino owned grocery and womens clothing shop; farther down is a law office that advertises in Spanish; a few blocks from that is Taqueria Mixteca, a Mexican restaurant which overflows with customers during lunch.
These stores make up a small but growing Latino community in Dayton, attracted by cheap housing, lenient immigration enforcement, and a city initiative meant to boost its population, and its economy, by welcoming immigrants. Dayton's innovative immigration initiative --which is already having an impact-- is being closely followed as a potential model other Rust Belt communities.
The city has been losing residents for decades with big companies like GM leaving the area, said Francisco Peláez Diaz, a Hispanic Missionary pastor at Daytons College Hill Community Church and one of the founders of Welcome Dayton, the municipal initiative to attract immigrants.
What is happening is that these immigrants are repopulating the city, added Peláez Diaz, who immigrated to the United States from Mexico in 2006. What many people are doing is coming, buying vacant houses and fixing them up because housing is very affordable in Dayton.
Gradual Decline and Then a Devastating Blow
After World War II, Dayton thrived as one of the countrys manufacturing hubs, along with cities like Detroit and Buffalo. Daytons population rose 15.7 percent between 1940 and 1950 and another 7.6 percent in the next decade, according to the U.S. Census.
However, as more and more businesses left for cheaper, non-union labor in the Sun Belt and overseas in the 1970s and 80s, Daytons population began to hollow out. The city saw a drastic decrease over the last 40 years, going from 243,601 residents in 1970 to 141,527 in 2010 a 41.6 percent decrease.
I think what youll find is that other states and cities are reacting to a perceived problem instead of being proactive
- Mayor Gary Leitzell
The citys economic plight was epitomized by the departure of its signature companies in the last decade. NCR, which opened its doors as the National Cash Register Company in Dayton in 1884, pulled up its stakes and moved to Atlanta in 2009. GM closed the doors of its enormous Moraine Assembly plant in December 2008 leaving behind 2,400 jobs.
After GM left it was like a triple effect. said Patricia Rickman, a former GM employee and the chair of Daytons Southwest Priority Board. All the other factories started laying off, closing up and leaving town,
It was really devastating to this city, she added.
As businesses and manufacturing left, the inevitable happened: Unemployment and home foreclosure rates climbed. Currently 10.3 percent of Daytons citizens are unemployed over two percent higher than the national average, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The psychology of the local person in Dayton now seems to be that they are very down on themselves, said Daytons Mayor Gary Leitzell,
Banking on Immigrants to Turn the Tide
With a vanishing population and more and more vacant homes, the city saw a solution where other states and towns saw a problem: immigrants.
Ive always said that if you want to get rich in America you back any immigrant off the boat because they have the work ethic to succeed, Leitzell said.
As the debate over immigration took center stage with the introduction of hardline immigration laws in states like Arizona, Alabama and Georgia, Dayton quietly bucked the trend last October when it adopted the Welcome Dayton initiative. The plan involves ideas to help immigrant start small businesses, integrate into the local government and gain access to certain heath and social services.
The plan started when the citys Human Relations Council decided to look into rumored unfair housing practices plaguing citys Latinos residents. From the study emerged Welcome Dayton, the initiative aimed at bringing immigrants to Dayton to start small businesses, fix up homes and make Dayton a more diverse community.
The things these immigrants here are bringing are good things, Peláez Diaz said. They are rebuilding houses, they are hard working people, theyre family oriented and theyre bringing energy to the city.
Peláez Diaz said that the initiative is multi-faceted. With business development the plan aims to revamp the strip of East Third Street and help start up immigrant-owned businesses. Other goals are to increase immigrant participation in local government and help smooth the way for both immigrants and refugees to access community and health services.
The idea with the initiative is to create an atmosphere and environment where people helping these immigrants can optimize their resources, said Tom Wahlrab, Welcome Daytons chairperson.
Welcome Dayton Key Points
Business & Economic Development
- Identify & support a business district for immigrants
- Reduce barriers in opening businesses
Local Government & Justice System
- Improve language interpreter capabilities
- Increase immigrant participation in local government
- Increase trust between communities and law enforcement
- Overcome language barriers in court system
Social & Health Services
- Eliminate barriers to services due to language and cultural differences
- Review all laws that create unnecessary barriers for immigrants
Besides Latinos, Dayton has also attracted a large population of Ahiska Turks as well as a burgeoning refugee communities from countries like Iraq and Burundi.
Welcome Dayton is viewed used as a potential model for cities facing a similar plight, and is helping to change the perception of Dayton as a downbeat town to one on the move. Earlier this year Wahlrab spoke to Global Detroit, a network of organizations and people that want to revive the Motor Citys economy through immigration.
Weve been at it a lot longer, weve attracted a lot more money, said Steve Tobocman of Global Detroit. But I believe there is a certain elegance and opportunity in the plan that Dayton has put together. Theyve done certain things so profoundly right that I think we have a lot to learn from it.
Using Immigrants to Attract Immigrants
Juan Urbieta is one of Dayton's immigrant success stories.
Born in Guanajuato, Mexico, Urbieta came to the U.S. at the age of 14 in the trunk of car. He spent his youth moving around Texas, building condominiums before following work to Dayton. In Dayton he met his late wife and decided to put down roots.
When I came here in [1986] there were almost no Hispanic people, Urbieta said. They didnt even know what a tortilla or a hot pepper was.
Urbieta gained legal residency in 1988 and a few years later gained his citizenship. In that time, he saved up his money and built up his construction business.
More than 20 years later, the stocky man with a fleeting resemblance to actor Luis Guzmán may seem a little out of place in the Midwest city with his cowboy boots, pencil-thin mustache and thick accent, but he has become a well-known name in the community. And his company, Urbieta Construction, has rebuilt homes from the East End to the surrounding suburbs.
People come here because they want to find the American Dream, Urbieta said. As an immigrant you have to have goals, you have to plan them and you have to go for them.
It appears that immigrants are following Urbietas lead and making their way to Dayton. In 2006 the total foreign-born population of the city was 22,461 out of 838,940 total residents. Six years later, Daytons immigrant community numbers 29,478 out of 841,310 total residents, according to the Migration Policy Institute (MPI).
While other cities in the Rust Belt, such as Detroit, Buffalo and Cleveland also have seen an uptick in their foreign-born population, the impact on Dayton has been more significant because of its smaller population.
Theyre not real big numbers but for a small population it is still very sizeable, said Jeanne Batalova, a demographer with the MPI. It definitely helps out.
