From the Senator's Desk…
November 30, 2006
Senator Shapleigh's notes and observations will keep you updated on what is happening behind the scenes in Austin and El Paso.
Written by Senator Eliot Shapleigh, www.shapleigh.org
Sunrise Over El Paso
Here’s sunrise over El Paso. During the campaign, I said the next ten years will be the ‘golden era’ of our community. Sunrise reminds me of a great new day dawning here in our community.
In cities across America, communities are in a race to attract talent. With the baby boomers set to retire, the hard demographic reality is that the work force will lose more than two workers for every one it gains by 2012. So the talented ‘young and restless’, those highly educated 25—35 year olds are the prize for the economic future.
Richard Florida, a public policy professor at George Mason University, is working with a special team of El Pasoans right now to help us plan our future. He calls this demographic ‘the creative class.’ From Atlanta to Milwaukee, from Tampa Bay to Charlotte, the race is on and we are ready!
During session, our priorities will focus on our Medical Center of the Americas, the expansion of Ft. Bliss, regional mobility, smart growth and Downtown Revitalization. We are working every day with our El Paso team to make these exciting things happen.
Right now, El Paso is truly the place to be.
Senator Eliot Shapleigh
