Small towns can succeed. Boomtowns need leadership and support

Any small town can become a boomtown.

So says author Jack Schultz http://www.boomtownusa.net/news.htm (Jack’s Blog is outstanding http://boomtownusa.blogspot.com/ ) , who’s devoted 15 years to researching why some small towns thrive while others remain stagnant or die. For his research, the author evaluated 15,800 towns, ranging in size from 190 to 52,000 people, which lie outside metropolitan areas. He named the towns "agburbs — small towns in rural America having the potential for successful markets."

From those towns, Schultz selected his "Golden Eagles" — the 100 top agburbs in America. In Indiana, Greencastle and Columbus made the final cut.

"Those towns show vitality and maintain a diversity of businesses," Schultz said this week to attendees at a workshop sponsored by Nappanee’s Community and Economic Development office. "There were more examples of these type of communities in Indiana than any other state."

By Stephanie MiddaughTruth Staff

Full Story: http://www.etruth.com/News/Content.aspx?ID=366928&page=