After years of population loss, some of America’s traditional industrial hubs are seeing their numbers flatten out or even grow again. And the leadership of their mayors has a lot to do with it.
For Ben Walsh, who in 2017 became mayor of Syracuse, N.Y., it started with crafting a vision for inclusive growth that could be a North Star for all the specific programming to come in his administration. “That was literally one of the first things we did,” Walsh said. In the most recent census, Syracuse added population for the first time in 70 years. Now, semiconductor giant Micron is preparing to build a nearby slated to create 9,000 jobs and support thousands more in the community. The vision “was for Syracuse to be a growing city—growing, that’s important—that embraces diversity and creates opportunity for all.”
Walsh joined Mayor Eddie D. Melton of Gary, Ind., and Mayor Paige Cognetti of Scranton, Pa., at Harvard on April 17 for a The mayors shared lessons on the leadership necessary to address economic and social challenges associated with decline and to catalyze collaborations that can spark and sustain growth.
Melton, a former Indiana state senator who became Gary’s mayor in 2024, agreed with Walsh that setting a vision—in Gary’s case, to “thoughtfully grow”—is a good place to start. While some may see large amounts of vacant land in Gary as a negative, “I look at it as a blank canvas,” Melton said. “We have a unique moment in history where folks feel the hope.”
Cognetti, who became Scranton’s first woman mayor in 2020, stressed the need for public leaders to recognize that communities that have seen job losses for generations suffer from a kind of economic trauma. The situation calls for public leaders to engage residents, listen and respond to their needs, and, while innovating, . “There’s a psychological element as much as investment and the nuts-and-bolts of revitalization,” she said. “We’re bringing confidence back, bringing some joy back, and bringing trust back.”
“You have to show your constituents that you’re taking actions that are different than what they’re historically used to. As you achieve those small wins and accomplish things, that starts to build confidence.”
The mayors’ discussion was co-sponsored by the Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard University and Harvard’s Institute of Politics. Maurice Cox, the Emma Bloomberg Professor in Residence of Urban Planning and Design at the Harvard Graduate School of Design and faculty affiliate of the Bloomberg Center for Cities, served as moderator. Cognetti, Melton, and Walsh each completed the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative, an based at the Bloomberg Center for Cities.
Back to basics
The mayors stressed the importance of finding ways, even amid a challenging economic climate, to deliver on local government basics such as public safety and sanitation. That gives residents improvements they can feel in their daily lives and begins to build the legitimacy and support to be able to tackle thorny problems.
For example, Melton hired Gary’s first full-time city engineer in 15 years to lead a data-driven push to upgrade basic infrastructure. His comprehensive assessment of the condition of street assets found that nearly half of the city’s 2,000 streetlights were broken. That led Mayor Melton to when a $3.4 million federal grant became available. “We’re literally rebuilding the city—inside, meaning staffing and administration, and externally,” Melton said.
In Scranton, Cognetti has made “responsible and responsive government” a hallmark of her administration—her city the Pennsylvania Governor’s Award for Local Government Excellence. She highlighted Scranton’s parks improvement effort, investing $26 million of state and federal funds in 32 neighborhood parks. Whether it’s a dog park, splash pad, or pickleball court, Cognetti said, “Every nook and cranny of the city has a new something.”
“There’s a psychological element as much as investment and the nuts-and-bolts of revitalization. We’re bringing confidence back, bringing some joy back, and bringing trust back.”
Quality-of-life issues have been a focus for Walsh as well. Syracuse also replaced its streetlights, in addition to launching new programs aimed at upgrading sidewalks and using covered trash cans to dramatically reduce litter. “These are the things that we actually can control,” Walsh said. “You have to show your constituents that you’re taking actions that are different than what they’re historically used to. As you achieve those small wins and accomplish things, that starts to build confidence.”
Partnering with higher ed
City halls rarely have the capacity and resources to solve tough challenges on their own, especially in struggling areas. That’s why is so critical. All three mayors pointed to partnerships with higher education as critical to catalyzing redevelopment, training workers, and acting as thought partners on key challenges.
Cognetti said Scranton’s five colleges and universities have been critical partners in her city’s turnaround. For example, the University of Scranton recently reconstructed a downtown building into a for its mechanical engineering program, and also broke ground on a with local businesses and other community partners. “Our institutions are stepping up and we’re partnering with them,” Cognetti said.
Walsh described how Syracuse University relocated some of its architecture school’s programming into a vacant warehouse downtown and has invested in streets, parks, and placemaking between the campus and city center. Meanwhile, Walsh is focused on partnerships to build the talent pipeline for Micron and its suppliers. A regional consortium of universities from Syracuse to Buffalo is fueling that effort by developing a curriculum to educate the thousands of engineers and technicians that will be needed. “We have to start acting regionally,” Walsh said, “because that’s how we have to compete globally, at a regional level.”
“We’re literally rebuilding the city—inside, meaning staffing and administration, and externally.”
Melton found his own regional partner 60 miles away at the University of Notre Dame. The university’s School of Architecture is collaborating with Gary’s redevelopment commission to which buildings downtown need to be demolished and which ones are good candidates for restoration. One downtown structure he has his eye on for revival is the neo-gothic , whose roof has caved in but whose limestone walls still stand proud.
Restoring iconic architecture, or what Cox called “sleeping beauties,” can be a critical ingredient in an urban turnaround. Walsh said restoration of the century-old and long-vacant was critical, noting the key role of federal and state historic preservation tax credits in making the project pencil out. And in Scranton, developers have turned the former campus of a Nottingham lace factory into a mix of houses, offices, retail, and an event space known as . “It’s a whole new neighborhood within Scranton,” Cognetti said, “and it’s right along our river.”
Changing the narrative
These stories of what comeback cities are becoming—not just the decline from what they once were—are critical to building momentum. As public leaders and the face of their cities, mayors have a big role in helping to shape that narrative, Cognetti said: “Part of it is getting those stories out and not letting other folks define us, not letting the ‘Rust Belt’ name define us.” That’s one reason why Scranton embraces its status as the fictional home of the Dunder Mifflin company in the hit TV show “The Office.” For example, the city hosts an Office-themed that happens each spring. “The Office has given us something to really dig into and celebrate,” she said.
Melton has the same mindset as he charts a revival in Gary, which he pointed out was the childhood home of Michael Jackson. Instead of decaying steel mills, he’d like Gary to be known for the sandy beaches of Indiana Dunes National Park, its top-notch rail infrastructure, and close proximity to Chicago. “We can be that bedroom community for a lot of individuals looking to relieve themselves of higher taxes and congestion and have access to lakefront,” Melton said. “There’s a narrative that Gary has acquired over the generations, and we’re not just allowing folks to tell that story for us any longer.”
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Banner image: (L to R) Moderator Maurice Cox, the Emma Bloomberg Professor in Residence of Urban Planning and Design at the Harvard Graduate School of Design and faculty affiliate of the Bloomberg Center for Cities; Paige Cognetti, mayor of Scranton, PA; Eddie D. Melton, mayor of Gary, IN; and Ben Walsh, mayor of Syracuse, NY.
Photos by Martha Stewart