Oklahoma City And Tulsa Get High Marks As "Cities Of The Future"

June 8, 2009 -- The annual North America Cities of the Future report published by fDi Magazine lists Oklahoma City as the most cost effective large city in the United States and the third most cost effective city in North America.

In the small city category, Tulsa ranked No. 8 as a "city of the future."

The magazine focuses on foreign direct investment and business globalization. The study looked at nearly 400 North American cities of various sizes, ranging from fewer than 100,000 to more than 1 million in population.

"In economic times like these, being recognized as a cost effective place to do business is very important to business retention and relocation," says Robin Roberts Krieger, Greater Oklahoma City Chamber Vice President of Economic Development. "We have been emphasizing this for awhile but it is always helpful to have an independent, third party identify your community as one of the most cost effective cities not only in the United States, but in all of North America. This is really something Oklahoma City can be proud of."

"Tulsa continues to outperform other cities across the nation in job growth, unemployment, income and cost of living. Add these factors to our diversified and emerging industries, the low cost of doing business and the momentum we've created with attractions like the BOK Center and a new downtown baseball park, and people from all over the world are taking notice of Tulsa and its potential," Jim Fram, Senior Vice President of Economic Development with the Tulsa Metro Chamber tells the Tulsa World.

The World reports the ranking took more than six months to compile. It looked at six main categories: economic potential, human resources, cost effectiveness, quality of life, infrastructure and business friendliness.