The shift to remote work early in the pandemic allowed wealthy residents to ditch big cities in droves and set up shop in smaller cities and towns nearby. While the surging costs of housing and the new freedom of remote work helped trigger this mass migration, small cities have been laying the groundwork over the last decade to entice these big-city refugees. Then came the pandemic, and remote work suddenly made small cities a viable home for wealthy professionals. For the past two decades, cities have turned to an economic development strategy I've deemed "the city authentic." It spiked even more during the pandemic when change of addresses from New York City jumped a whopping 787%.

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Persons: Tim Burton, —, Richard Florida, millennials, DAVID BREWSTER, downtowns, weathers, It's, Alison Roman, Chrissy Teigen, it's, restaurateurs, John Greim, Instagramable cafés, David A, Banks Organizations: Urban, New York Times, Creative, The New York Times, Industrial Development Agency, IDA, Arts, Craft, Fulton, Star Tribune, Getty, Social, Business, New York City, Neighborhood Initiative, Globalization Studies, University, Albany SUNY, UUP Locations: America, Hudson, New York City, Austin , Texas, Charlotte, North Carolina, Denver , Minneapolis, Salt Lake City, Dallas, Louisville, Connecticut, Florida, Washington, Fulton, New York, Athens, Georgia, Tulsa , Oklahoma, Arts District, Saint Paul , Minnesota, , New York, Rensselaer, Troy, Rensselaer County, Newark , New Jersey, Dudley, Boston