CLEVELAND, Ohio – For businesses, where they are located often matters, thus the name of a new online tool launched Tuesday by the regional Fund for Our Economic Future.
Found at wherematters.us (note the “us” instead of “com” at the end of the URL), users can plug in an address and find a variety of detail, from the number of workers estimated to be available within a certain distance to the community’s racial makeup and more.
“Too often, ‘forever’ site development decisions are made using incomplete, ‘right-now’ data,” said Bethia Burke, president of the Fund. “Comparing two potential sites based solely on limited real estate characteristics risks ignoring critical information like diversity of a labor shed and the time, cost and carbon emissions of commuting.
“But until now, that information wasn’t easily available. Where Matters puts this data at the fingertips of every corporate leader, site selector and government actor figuring out where and how to apply incentives to make informed choices that work better for everyone.”