Tucson employment has been predominantly service based, with many jobs tied to tourism, retail, and public service. More recently, regional economic growth has largely been fueled by population increases, not real economic expansion. To improve this situation, Tucson has turned to clustering. An economic cluster is a geographic concentration of interdependent competitive firms in related industries that do business with each other. The cluster concept promotes collaboration, enhances research and production capabilities, and creates more powerful advocacy for common needs: infrastructure improvements, workforce development and tax relief.
Tucson's clusters include: Advanced Composite Materials Cluster, Environmental Technology Industry Cluster, Aerospace Cluster, Information Technology Cluster, Life Sciences Cluster, and the Optics Cluster. Some of Tucson's top employers include University of Arizona, Raytheon Missle Systems, Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Tucson Unified School District, Carondelet Health Network, University Medical Center, America Online, Intuit and Honeywell. In 2003, the per capita income in Tucson is projected to be $25,017 (up 2.1% over 2001) with the Median Family Income for year ending 2002: $49,200 (H.U.D. estimate for a family of four).
Credit: City of Tucson
