Escanaba Spooktacular Trunk or Treat-Spooky Economics Through the Conjouring of Ghosts, Witches and Goblins

Escanaba recently put on a Trunk-or-Treat and it was awesome. There was a fire truck, local businesses came out, and kids and families were having a great time. This is exactly what you want to see in a community, especially in a vibrant downtown area like Lundington Street. A lot more fun stuff going on these days.

This event was put on by the Downtown Development Authority (DDA). If you are looking to start a business downtown and invest in our community, the DDA would be more than happy to take your call or email. Escanaba DDA

(Illustrative Only)
Spooky Economics
through Ghosts, Witches
and Goblins

Beyond the immediate fun, let's consider the economic benefits. As established in research, social connections and economic development are closely intertwined. Events like this create social ties, helping people get to know and understand one another.

 Typically, stronger social engagement leads to stronger economic development—as people feel more connected to their community, they get involved and drive positive outcomes.

This is why economic growth often follows social growth. Tightly knit, highly social communities tend to be economically stronger and foster more startups.

 Escanaba has a fantastic opportunity to leverage both its sense of community and its potential in startups and tourism to become a thriving regional hotspot.

Be sure to review the study below for additional insights. I hope everyone had fun at the event—and to the kids out there, don't eat too much candy!

Escanaba Spooktacular Trunk or Treat draws roughly 2,000 people

Social Capital And Economic Mobility: Non-Technical Research Summary

• Friendship networks in the United States are heavily stratified by socioeconomic class, as individuals tend to form connections primarily with peers of similar income levels

• Children who grow up in communities with higher economic connectedness—meaning greater interaction between low- and high-income individuals—exhibit significantly higher rates of upward income mobility in adulthood

• Other dimensions of social capital, such as community cohesiveness and civic engagement, do not show a strong association with upward economic mobility

• Differences in economic connectedness can account for the established relationships between upward mobility and factors like neighborhood poverty rates and racial segregation

• The class-based social disconnection is driven equally by income segregation across various social settings and by friending bias within those settings

• Both exposure and friending bias are influenced by institutional structures and policies, meaning they can be modified through targeted local interventions

Chetty, R., Jackson, M. O., Kuchler, T., Stroebel, J., Hiller, A., Oppenheimer, S., & The Opportunity Insights Team. (2022). Social Capital And Economic Mobility: Non-Technical Research Summary. Opportunity Insights. https://opportunityinsights.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/socialcapital_nontech.pdf