MANSFIELD — The immediate impact of Mansfield perhaps losing its status as a Metropolitan Statistical Area is uncertain.
But local officials said longer-term impacts could cost the city and Richland County millions of dollars.
What’s in a name? It may not seem like a big deal, but for 144 communities around the country, including three in Ohio, it could mean losing millions of dollars in federal funds and future business investments.
Currently, to be dubbed an MSA, a city anchoring the metro area needs to have a population of at least 50,000 people. Under the proposed change, that requirement would double to 100,000 people.
The MSA designation was created seven decades ago to delineate key population centers around the United States. The country’s population has swelled to more than 330 million people, more than double what it was in 1950, meaning what does and doesn’t count as an MSA may need to be updated, some in government believe.
“In reviewing the 2010 standards, the committee noted that the minimum population required for an urban area to qualify a metropolitan statistical area had not kept pace with population growth of the United States,” according to a report from a federal committee reviewing the matter.
Mansfield’s population, according to the U.S. Census slipped below 50,000 almost 15 years ago and is now around 46,600. But city officials almost a decade ago worked a deal with the feds to make sure Mansfield remained eligible for programs that benefit low- to moderate-income residents.
That may be true today. But it’s the future that is cause for concern, an issue raised by Mayor Tim Theaker during Tuesday’s City Council meeting, who said the change could “extremely affect” federal funding.
Adrian Ackerman, community development and housing director for Mansfield, said the city receives just more than $1 million annually in Community Development Block Grant and HOME Investment Partnerships Program through the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development.
“I haven’t seen for sure anything that is an immediate threat to the federal grants,” Ackerman said. “Our main concern is changing the designation that could eventually lead to the government seeking to change the grant status.
“At this point, we are not seeing anything directly tied (to the MSA status).”
Ackerman said she would be reaching out to HUD to demonstrate projects that have been accomplished using CDBG/HOME funds and the benefits to local residents.
“It’s definitely something we want to make our voices heard about,” Ackerman said.
In recent years, these federal dollars have gone to improving local neighborhoods and assisting homeowners and also to groups like Mansfield Metropolitan Housing, Catholic Charities, Richland County Transit, Area Agency on Aging, Harmony House and Mansfield UMADAOP, all of whom provide direct assistance to residents.
It could also impact funds not even yet designated, according to Jodie Perry, president/CEO at Richland Area Chamber & Economic Development.
“Some of this is indirect,” Perry said. “When the government is setting up programs and distributing money for that program, they will use that MSA designation as a differentiator.
“The MSA is more than just the City of Mansfield from an economic development standpoint. We are concerned about losing that and that data that is associated with an MSA. The farther away we get from the designation, the farther we get away from specific data.”
There are also concerns losing the MSA designation could impact the area’s ability to attract new companies and business investment. Mansfield was ranked seventh in the nation in 2020 for new business investment for cities its size.
“I think it does in the fact we have a greater amount of data from the MSA designation than we would otherwise have,” Perry said. “We come up differently in rankings than we would without the MSA.
“It starts to imply we are a different-sized community. (The 144) cities are all different, but we have some things in common. We are larger cities and areas, complex organisms that reflect our diverse communities, more so than a smaller city or county.”
Tim Bowersock, Mansfield’s economic development director, said the MSA designation may not have the impact it once did, given improved technology.
“What they are looking for is the size of the potential workforce,” he said.
“In today’s world, a company with the touch of a button can look 10, 20 or even more miles away to see the size of a potential workforce upon which it can draw,” Bowersock said, adding a recent lead looked at an area 70 miles away from Mansfield for potential employees.
“In today’s world, I don’t think companies put a great deal of importance on the (MSA designation.) It has some benefits, but I don’t think it would kill a prospect from looking at our area. They don’t really ask about the MSA, they ask about the workforce from which they could draw,” Bowersock said.
Impacts of losing the MSA designation could be felt outside city limits. Richland County Commissioner Darrell Banks said he opposed such a change, which could impact regional planning funding and efforts.
“I believe, small city metro areas would have a more difficult time competing for federal funds to meet the needs of our population,” said Banks, a former Bellville mayor.
“I fear our citizens’ needs will be overlooked with this change. Citizens of Mansfield and surrounding areas have needs that have been addressed to some degree with the current guidelines for MSAs. A change of this magnitude would be inconsistent, making long used patterns of data gathering no longer pertinent.”
He said it’s important for all levels of government to work together toward economic recovery.
“I fear smaller areas will be dominated by larger metro areas, another gain for the big cities at the cost of smaller cities and the area surrounding them,” Banks said.
The proposal is in the hands of a federal agency, which means change, if it comes, may come slowly, perhaps allowing time for local and state officials to be heard.
Perry said many local elected leaders, business leaders and those run who run local organizations and non-profits have written letters to OMB in opposition to the change.
She said U.S. Rep. Troy Balderson, U.S. Rep. Bob Gibbs, both of whom represent parts of Mansfield/Richland County, have written letters, as have U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown and Rob Portman.
In their joint letter, sent Friday, Balderson and Gibbs said Mansfield is the catalyst for economic development in the region.
“The potential loss of federal funding would negatively impact the investment the community has made in economic development in the region,” the congressmen wrote.
“They have tirelessly worked to expand businesses, bring jobs into the area, and ensure economic success in the region for years to come. Given the negative consequences this would bring to Ohio, we strongly and respectfully request you reconsider these proposed changes to the MSA minimum population threshold,” Balderson and Gibbs said.
Perry said she didn’t know how quickly a change may be made.
“I believe this is something that is happening at the bureaucratic level, not political. Sometimes that stuff tends to move a little slower,” she said.
