Today on Midday: What will it take for cities like Baltimore to bounce back, not only from the ravages of the Coronavirus pandemic, but from the problems that have plagued many mid-sized American urban centers for years prior to COVID 19?

We begin today with a conversation about a new book that looks at the challenges facing six cites: Baltimore, Cleveland, Detroit, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and St Louis. How do the challenges these urban centers have to deal with differ from those of larger cities like New York or Los Angeles? The US population has increased only slightly in recent years, but over the last 50 years, the overall US population grew more than 50%, The citizenry of these six cites 4, however, shrunk more than 38%? Are these cities poised for a comeback, and if so, what will the drivers of that comeback be?

Tom's first guest is Mac McComas, senior program manager with the Johns Hopkins 21st Century Cities Initiative. Along with 21CC director Matthew Kahn, McComas is co-author of Unlocking the Potential of Post-Industrial Cities. And full disclosure: he is also a member of the WYPR Board of Directors.

Mac McComas joins us on our digital line.

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