HUD Secretary Cuomo hails cities but "opportunity gap" threatens

"This is a midterm report card with an 'A' grade but there is still homework to be done," Cuomo said of a new federal report Friday that offers both a soothing and sobering picture of the urban landscape.

The second annual "State of the Cities" report was released at the U.S. Conference of Mayors national convention.

Cuomo, U.S. secretary of housing and urban development, credited the nation's strong five-year economic performance for the reduction in unemployment that nearly every major American city enjoys. But a disconnect between the number of low-skill jobs that are available and the number of people seeking them causes worry, Cuomo said.

In addition, Cuomo said at a time when wealth is being created for many, others remain trapped in a cycle of poverty, poor educational opportunities and homelessness.

"We have more millionaires than at any time in our history," Cuomo said. "But an estimated 600,000 Americans still sleep on our streets every night."

Good news for cities abounds in the 75-page report:

-The economy has produced 16 million new jobs and record low unemployment. And the number of employed people living in central cities increased by almost 3.7 million people in the past five years.

-Unemployment in central cities fell to an average of 5.3 percent early this year from 8.2 percent in 1993.

-Downtowns that just 20 years ago more closely resembled ghost towns in Cleveland, Baltimore, St. Louis and Washington have become tourist meccas thanks to sports arenas and arts centers.

-Crime, the age-old bane of city dwelling, has been tamed to a degree. Violent crime fell 19 percent in big cities between 1993 and 1997.

But despite the impressive gains, poor city residents are being left behind by growing numbers of middle-class residents. The report says that since 1970, nearly 6 million middle-income and affluent families have left central cities.

Poor schools are one of the most frequently cited reasons for the middle-class flight, according to the study. In 1994 and 1996, 60 percent of children in urban school districts failed to achieve basic competency on standardized reading and math tests. And in the nation's 20 largest urban school districts, more than half of the students never graduate.

"For millions of urban youth, finishing high school and attending college seem an impossible dream - this in an era demanding high skills for high wages" the report says. "If we are not now ready to take on these challenges when the budget is in surplus, unemployment is at record lows and the stock market is at record highs, when will we be ready?"

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