Why people put down community roots

Paula Ellis is vice president of strategic initiatives for the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

What makes 43,000 people from across the United States love where they live?

It's not what you think.

A good job? A bustling local economy? Access to good health care?

Important, but not vital, according to a Gallup survey funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and released late last year.

As it turns out, people's loyalty and passion for their community is overwhelmingly driven by just three things: a community's social offerings (like a place for people to meet and how much people care for one another), how welcoming it is to all kinds of people and its aesthetics.

These top factors were consistent in the 26 diverse cities surveyed - from Miami to Macon, Ga., San Jose to State College, Pa. Not even the worst recession in years changed people's minds.

No communities in New York were surveyed, but that doesn't mean there aren't lessons here for leaders in Nassau and Suffolk counties. And attachment to our communities is about more than good feelings: How much we love where we live may also affect our area's livelihood. The Soul of the Community survey found a significant connection between residents' love for their community and the area's local economic growth.

In other words, communities with the highest percentage of people with a strong emotional connection to their city had the highest local gross domestic product growth rates over time. Love and money may go together after all - at least when it comes to community vitality.

For now, this research hasn't determined whether community attachment causes a higher growth rate, or vice versa. But previous Gallup research did find a causal relationship to be true for companies: Having a higher number of employees who are emotionally engaged in their jobs leads to higher profits.

Local leaders can take all this research to heart. In today's world - where communities are often transient or virtual - a sense of place still has deep meaning.

Leaders also can use the findings to their community's advantage. If members of the town board know what fills their residents' collective soul, they can help strengthen those factors. Invest in parks or new spaces for people to gather, and people feel better about where they live - and they may even be more entrepreneurial and productive.

This is particularly important in a globalized economy, with cities competing to attract talented workers and companies. Building a community where people want to put down roots and build a life is an essential part of that equation.

Already, leaders in several cities are putting these findings to work. The Miami Foundation is going to use the results to build a public policy agenda. Since social offerings are so important to Miamians, for example, the foundation might find it's time to advocate for more public access to the waterfront.

In Detroit, a city knee-deep in reinvention, the survey found that among all its residents, young college grads show the highest levels of emotional connection to the city. That's the demographic that areas are clamoring for - the most recent Long Island Index report warns that the majority of Long Islanders in that age group plan to leave within five years. Detroit can exploit this connection as it plots its comeback.

These findings alone won't pull the country out of the recession, of course. But the survey does provide guidance, based on strong data, that leaders can use as they plot long-term, public investments.