Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Buffalo, Rochester are among 22 best in U.S. for income equality
Money is distributed a bit more evenly in the Buffalo and Rochester areas than in the nation as a whole, according to new figures from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The new rankings are based on the total income drawn by each metropolitan area's highest quintile, the official name for the group of households whose earnings constitute the top 20 percent locally.
Buffalo is 22nd in the national standings, which encompass all 53 metros that have at least 1 million residents. The top 20 percent of all households in the Buffalo area receive 49.67 percent of the total income in the two-county metro.
Rochester is even better in the income-equality standings, which run from the smallest to the biggest percentage. Its highest quintile draws 49.40 percent of local income, good for 16th place.
Click on the View Slideshow button for the U.S. rankings, beginning with Salt Lake City, the area where the highest quintile receives the lowest percentage of local income.
The new rankings were derived by Business First from the one-year version of the U.S. Census Bureau's 2017 American Community Survey (ACS), which was released last month. The 2017 ACS is the latest source of official data at the metropolitan level.
The Miami area finished last in the standings. Its highest quintile receives 54.22 percent of total regional income, roughly four-and-a-half percentage points larger than Buffalo's distribution.
Is this really a good thing? Both Rochester and Buffalo are 2 of the poorest cities in America. Actually, with more income disparity comes higher income to a whole region.
Is this really a good thing? Both Rochester and Buffalo are 2 of the poorest cities in America. Actually, with more income disparity comes higher income to a whole region.
It is for the metro area, not just the city.
Also, a lot the other rankings are also based upon a limited criteria. For instance, the ranking you are referring to is for only cities with 65,000 people and doesn’t take into account the differences among cities in terms of annexation. I’ve mentioned this many times on this forum in the past as to why when comparing cities, that has to be considered, as not all cities are the same in this regard and impacts comparison rankings. So, a city in a state that allows for annexation could “water down” its poverty rate by annexing an unincorporated middle class suburb into city limits, while NY doesn’t allow for annexation. People, generally within the range of middle class, have moved out of the cities in just about every metro, but some cities can still include said people by expanding city limits.
Then, when you look at metro poverty rates, there is a small gap, if any, between say the major Upstate metros and even growing/popular metros. So, that illustrates that while the city propers can vary due to different rules, the metro areas have a smaller margin in terms of poverty rate between them. While this list is a little old, it is recent enough to see what I’m referring to on the metro level, which at least has the same “rules” for each area: U.S. Population in Poverty Percentage Metro Area Rank Based on ACS 2010-2014 data
So, I don’t think this a “bad” thing for those areas and may speak to opportunities for those in the the other 80% to get into the upper 20% within said areas, relatively speaking. I say this because a couple of popular Southern areas(Atlanta and Charlotte) rank low on this list of 53 metro areas and have been noted for having low mobility among its poorest populations. Just so people don’t think I’m making that up: https://atlanta.curbed.com/2013/7/23...pward-mobility
Anyway, you get the point and I think a lot of this in such areas is due to those moving into these areas bringing skills/education to these areas due to a partial image given about said areas and long time residents that many be on the margin have a tough time competing, let alone those that move down there having to compete as well. So, an area can be popular and have its cons/issues that aren’t much to different from issues in Upstate cities/areas.
On the flip side, an area like Washington DC actually does well in terms of this list and has one of the highest median household incomes in the country at the metro level. So, it will depend on the area and other factors like being a government employment center. A lot of the cities higher on that list are capital city metros.
Last edited by ckhthankgod; 10-10-2018 at 06:25 AM..
Is this really a good thing? Both Rochester and Buffalo are 2 of the poorest cities in America. Actually, with more income disparity comes higher income to a whole region.
The challenges of growing a video game startup in upstate New York (Video)
When Karthik and Guha Bala talk about their new company, Velan Studios, they speak full of passion and potential for growing the video game studio in downtown Troy, New York.
It is the second video game studio that they have built in the region. This time, they are coming to the startup with more knowledge, connections and faster growth than the last time, but that means bigger challenges.
We sat down with the Balas for the latest installment of our series, The Interview. Watch the video below to learn more about what has changed since the Balas started their first business as they are starting their second and third, with the investment firm Velan Ventures.
Since the Balas started Velan Studios in 2016, it has already grown to more than 40 employees. Velan Studios is focused on research and development of augmented reality, robotics, the integration of hardware and software and other emerging technologies in gaming and entertainment.
The studio is not ready to disclose current projects or partnerships.
Karthik and Guha Bala say with Velan Studio's growth and other new studios coming to the area, there is potential to build the area's video gaming industry, which employs about 450 people, to 3,000 people in the next 10 years. They have been pushing for New York state to give digital media and gaming companies a 25 percent tax credit. It would be an extension of the film industry tax credit that offers $420 million a year in tax breaks for film and movie productions.
Without those tax credits, and more support from the state, Karthik Bala said they will have to look outside the region to continue to grow, and open a studio in Boston or Montreal.
The Bala brothers are best known for starting their first company, Vicarious Visions, in 1991 while they were in high school in Rochester. The company eventually sold to Activision Blizzard (Nasdaq: ATVI).
MedMen signs deal to acquire PharmaCann in $682 million stock deal
One of the nation’s largest medical marijuana companies announced a purchase deal that could double its reach — and bring Buffalo's two operating dispensaries under common ownership.
Los Angeles-based MedMen Enterprises Inc. signed a letter of intent to acquire PharmaCann in a $682 million stock deal. The resulting company would have cannabis licenses in 12 states, with 79 cannabis facilities.
But the deal calls into question existing state rules in New York that limit registered organizations to four dispensaries: Both companies are among 10 registered organizations in the state, and each operate a dispensary in Amherst. A third dispensary is set to open this year by Terradiol New York. MedMen said the transaction is subject to regulatory approvals by various local and state authorities in each of the markets where PharmaCann’s assets and licenses are held.
Jill Montag, a spokesperson for the DOH, said the company does not yet have approval to conduct the transaction, and it does not yet have sufficient information to determine whether approval can be granted. State regulations also prohibit registered organizations from changing the composition of its ownership without prior written approval.
Daniel Yi, MedMen senior vice president of corporate communications, told Buffalo Business First the signed letter of intent will be followed by meetings with the DOH as well as any other pertinent regulatory agencies in New York to figure out next steps and compliance issues.
“We expect there will be some kind of resolution, but what that will look like we don’t yet know,†he said. “Different states move at different speeds. You have to start somewhere, so it starts with PharmaCann and MedMen agreeing to this acquisition and we go from there.â€
MedMen entered the New York market in 2017 when the company acquired Bloomfield Industries, one of the five original organizations selected for New York’s fledgling MMJ program, which launched in January 2016.
If approved, the new deal would give MedMen operations in 12 states adding business in Illinois, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio, Virginia and Michigan, with licenses for 66 retail stores and 13 cultivation and production facilities, including other acquisitions pending by the company. The company said it would also gain more than 50 percent of the total estimated marijuana market of $75 billion.
In New York, the medical marijuana program has 1,927 registered practitioners and 74,417 certified patients.
But MedMen also sees the big picture, especially with more recent efforts in New York and elsewhere to legalize adult recreational use of marijuana.
“New York is a very important market,†Yi said. “Ultimately, the way MedMen looks at the space is we’re in an expansion period now. Everyone sees how quickly this industry is growing and evolving. This is a bit of a race for players like MedMen to position itself for success.â€
Last edited by ckhthankgod; 10-12-2018 at 06:06 AM..
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
