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Best Performing U.S. City of 2011

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    San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro on why the city had the best performing economy of 2011.

  • Duration 3:53
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-- here now let's turn to the best performing American city of last year.

-- remember the Milken Institute in other folks over there at the think tank just unveiled a study of the top cities by economy in the US.

Is your Citi one of them.

And the resolved.

Don't mess with Texas here we go number five Coleen temple Ford a Texas number four Austin round rock Texas number three.

Fort Collins Loveland Colorado again -- economy here number two El Paso number one.

San Antonio takes the number one spot why what joining us now out of Fox Business explicit.

San Antonio Julian Castro and congratulations -- thank you for being with us on Fox Business.

Thanks for having really -- -- what.

I mean look you've got a lower than the national average rate unemployment you're bringing in a lot of high tech business to that to me is that they think really enemy you look at this and you say.

You beat out Boston which is always getting a lot of awards for being so high tech but what is it -- gave you this number one position.

Well -- as the Milken Institute made clear in its report it's really a confluence of things a San Antonio is one of the fastest growing American cities right now.

Its economy is diversified so even during these last couple of years it hasn't been.

Overly dependent on one sector -- another.

But basically in the three sectors that are really going strong right now here.

25 billion dollar economic impact every year.

Second sector is the education sector San Antonio's median age is about four and a half years underneath.

The average for the United States -- very young population and that's growing and then the military and government sector.

After the last -- -- San Antonio god over two billion dollars of investment com and all military medic training was consolidated at Fort Sam Houston.

And so San Antonio actually has the largest joint base operation.

In all the Department of Defense.

And you've also got an attraction for 21 century industries like solar you're getting a huge investment from a company called OCR solar working with.

Another solar company that this EPS and I look at this and I say you're you're stealing this away but.

Are you worried at how many jobs -- is going to bring in are you worried that solar right now it's sort of becoming commodity ties to people in a way or sometimes attacking -- saying it's not the answer to jobs in America what do you say -- Well what we believe is that we have found this sweet spot at the intersection of job creation and environmental stewardship.

CPS energy is the largest municipal utility in the United States that serves both electric and gas customers.

And what we did was that a couple years back the utility like many utilities across United States said.

We want 20% of our capacity to be renewable energy.

We changed the -- model to say well if we're gonna go Green.

We're also gonna get Green invested in the community so when the CPS energy does a power purchase agreement for instance in this case 400 megawatts of solar.

It also demands that that company -- good jobs and a corporate headquarters into the city that's -- way of you know.

Sort of getting past the usual conundrum of well you know do you go -- Renewable energy and admittedly is a little bit more expensive.

But you know also create jobs we've found a way to do -- Well the gang over milk and they're not too stupid I mean they're highly intelligent they -- do you.

By the way everybody he's young to 37 years old Stamford undergrad Harvard law it's it's great to have -- congratulations -- Castro.

Thanks a lot list San Antonio mayor -- and Castro winning that award for best cities index by the Milken Institute we're not.

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