London ranks high as North American Small City of the Future

London ON – (April 24, 2007) Today, fDi magazine announces London, Ontario ranks in the Top Five of Most Cost Effective North American Small Cities of the Future, the Top Five Best Economic Potential and overall Top Ten (with a fourth place finish).

fDi researchers took more than six months to select the “top ten” shortlists of cities of all sizes with the best strategies and resources for economic development. Courtney Fingar, editor of fDi magazine, said: “fDi magazine’s City of the Future ranks reflects an independent panel of judges’ views on each city according to seven selection factors.

As part of the selection process, nine judges reviewed nominations from 108 cities on more than 60 criteria designed to assess cities’ potential to attract business investment projects.”

This is the first time that cities in the United States, Canada and Mexico have competed directly against one another in fDi’s Cities of the Future research.

“This is significant recognition for London by a magazine held in high regard by the international economic development community,” said John Kime, London Economic Development Corporation’s President and CEO. “This independent assessment of London’s economic potential, cost effectiveness, quality of life, human resources, infrastructure and business friendliness is another tool for LEDC to raise London’s profile internationally.”

fDi magazine’s “Locations of the Future” competition has been running for five years and covers almost every region across the world. The methodology is designed to identify those cities that have the basics in place to flourish in the next few years by attracting high levels of inward investment. The shortlists are created by asking cities to provide data and qualitative information in much the same way investors approach locations during the screening process used to decide which are suitable for capital investment projects.

“As Londoners, we have always viewed The Forest City as a well-rounded community, ideal for raising families and investing in enterprise,” says Mayor Anne Marie DeCicco-Best. “Now, through the fDi rankings, we have objective results to confirm we’re definitely taking the right steps to ensure our city’s future prosperity.”

In the second half of 2006, fDi magazine invited key cities across North America to answer more than 60 questions in seven broad categories. A total of 108 cities were considered by fDi’s panel of judges, which scored each city. Cities were categorized by size so that cities across North American could compete against each other on a level basis. London was ranked as a Small City with a population between 100,000 and 500,000.


For more information, please contact:
Lesley Cornelius
Acting Director, Marketing & Communications
London Economic Development Corporation
519-661-5009