The genius of Mayor Bloomberg's plan to develop a new applied sciences campus in New York City is that it acknowledges the increasingly pivotal role of academic institutions as drivers of local economic growth. At a time when large corporations may not be the reliable job producers they were in the past and cities like New York badly need to…

With Washington trapped in budget battles and partisan gridlock, cities have emerged as the best source of government innovation. Nowhere is this more visible than in New York City. Since taking office in 2002, Mayor Bloomberg has introduced a steady stream of innovative policies, from a competition to recruit a new applied sciences campus and a…