Marquette, Sault honored as good places for entrepreneurs

Both Marquette and Sault Ste. Marie have been recognized as communities that work to build growth and entrepreneurship in Michigan.

They were the only two U.P. cities among 46 Michigan communities given either four or five stars in eCities assessments released by iLabs, at University of Michigan-Dearborn’s Center for Innovation Research.

It’s Marquette’s third consecutive year gaining the recognition.

“Marquette continues to garner statewide and national honors for a number of reasons,” says Marquette Mayor John Kivela. “When it comes to entrepreneurial ventures, we earned high marks for being a walkable community; iLabs also recognized Marquette’s diverse business community and the major investments we’ve made in technology.”

The eCities research looked at more than 100 Michigan cities to identify best practices and methods that the communities can use to help with job growth, economic diversity and entrepreneurial development.

The project began in 2007 to assess cities on 32 markers of entrepreneurial activity, like clustering, incentives, growth, policies, community and education.

Writer: Sam Eggleston
Source: John Kivela, City of Marquette