By Joe Hadsall
jhadsall@joplinglobe.com
Forbes magazine, a national business publication, recently released its list of the best places for business and careers. Joplin placed No. 94 among 179 smaller metropolitan areas.
Rob O’Brian, president of the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce, said being in the middle of the pack in a Forbes list isn’t a bad thing.
The ranking was determined by evaluating criteria such as the level of educational attainment, income growth, job growth and the cost of living.
Though Joplin placed No. 94 overall, it ranked No. 60 because of the low cost of doing business and No. 73 for projected job growth. O’Brian said those are good signs for Joplin.
“The data in some of these lists can sometimes be outdated,” O’Brian said. “But it’s encouraging to see us at those levels.”
In the category for larger cities, the Fayetteville, Ark., metro area ranked No. 4; Springfield came in at No. 36; and Tulsa, Okla., finished at 65. Kansas City and St. Louis followed at 84 and 86, respectively.
This is the 11th year Forbes has published the lists.
According to the magazine’s report, almost every community suffered in the rankings, thanks to an economy that laid off about 651,000 jobs in February and 4.4 million since the recession began in December 2007.
North Carolina and Colorado had the most top finishers on the lists.
O’Brian said a state’s business policies and taxes also affect a city’s standing on a list.
