If an economist were to look at Fargo-Moorhead during the last few months of 2009, he or she would not expect the economy to be holding. A record snowfall, a flood, a recession and a blizzard during a flood during the recession would appear to cripple any market in the country. All the economic indicators would point to doomsday and a faster plummet down to national recession levels. That’s what the indicators would say-schematics and algorithms so cut and dry they resemble any North Dakotan’s lips in January.
As a marketing professional, college educator, business owner and 10-year resident of the Fargo-Moorhead area, I have seen first hand how this region beats the odds, bands together and survives. For a clearer picture of what is going on in our local economy, it’s time these indicators try to figure in more than hard numbers and instead look to the intangibles that prove any market economy can survive under the harshest conditions. Here is what can’t be calculated. Here is the Fargo Factor.
A Community That Shows Up
No one likes a Monday. But in this area, we’ll take a Monday that’s above zero without wind over a Friday blizzard every time. North Dakota and Minnesota natives learn that steadfast ethic at an early age on every corner bus stop. It carries over into our adult lives where you may need to get up at 5:30 am to shovel out your car, plug it in, let it warm up and safely travel in order to get to work at 8. But you do get to work at 8.
A Community of Compassion
Fargo-Moorhead isn’t a Utopia. There are enemies, feuds and general disagreements like every other place. The difference with the Fargo Factor is that any bitterness or malcontent can be suppressed by the desire to do the right thing, especially in times of crisis. Anyone who’s been pulled out of a ditch or snow bank by a complete stranger knows this first hand. With a metro population slowly surpassing the 200,000 mark, Fargo-Moorhead is big enough to harbor the mindset the we are all neighbors.
A Community of Conservative Change
Did Fargo just discover Twitter? Yep. Do some of our residents still think the Atkins diet is all the rage? Probably. Some may view thisas Fargo being out-of-touch, and with trends like Twitter, maybe we were a little behind the times. But when banks and the real estate market kept rolling the dice, Fargo knew when to walk away (maybe because that Kenny Rogers single just hit number one). All joking aside, Fargo-Moorhead is liberal enough to seek change, but conservative and stubborn enough to make calculated decisions. Our lenders are fair. Our businesses are fair. Because of this, local banks can still push entrepreneurs to chase dreams with confidence.
A Community of Learning
Roughly 15 percent of the entire metro area is made of college students. Each university and college specializes in majors across all aspects of the job market from nanotechnology to operatic performance. This constant insurgence of new ways of thinking brings balance and variety.
A Community of Realists
Even with all the talk and articles, including this one, about Fargo’s espirit de corps, the community understands that we aren’t magically shielded from the struggling economy. People will lose jobs this year. Many already have. What we’ve never lost is pride, optimism and our work ethic. Those three intangibles make up the Fargo Factor.
But I suppose I should throw some numbers out there for the skeptics. Maybe this way we can measure the power of my Fargo Factor indicator. I’m going to avoid any mention of money be it saved revenue, lost revenue, government aid or any other financial figure. There seems to be a war of words online between those effected by this disaster and other national emergencies, like Hurricane Katrina, over who got what amount and why. Instead, let’s just examine the sheer results of what such a small metropolis was able to accomplish.
Fargo filled 3.5 million sandbags, by roughly 30,000 volunteers, in 21 days or less.
Each sandbag weighs between 30-40 pounds. To make sure these numbers don’t mislead, I’ll assume every bag weighed just 30 pounds.
3.5 million bags x 30lbs per bag = 105,000,000lbs or 52,000 tons
3.5 million bags ÷ 30,000 volunteers = 117 bags per volunteer or 3510lbs
3.5 million bags ÷ 21 days = 166,667 bags or 2500 tons per day
40.8′ = the height of the floodwaters
79.7′ = the amount of snow for Fargo in 2008-2009
92.0′ = the combined height of the Minnesota Timberwolves 14-man roster
More importantly, I think the Fargo Factor can be simplified with two stats.
275,000. This is the number of sandbags Fargo-Moorhead donated to smaller towns around the area that couldn’t have possibly fought the flood by themselves.
0. The total number of lootings and murders during the flood fight.
You can’t measure intangibles, and that’s unfortunate because the rest of the nation could see how, when you operate as a community, everyone stays above water.