Is New York becoming older, but wiser?

Something like that, according to a study of New York population trends over the last 20 years. The study, “The Graying of the Empire State,” was released this week by the Empire Center for Public Policy.

Overall, however, things aren’t looking so good for the Empire State.

The study found there have been sharp declines in young adults, ages 20-34, both Upstate and in the lower portion of the Hudson Valley and Long Island.

Meanwhile, that cohort has been drawn to the bright lights and promise of fast times in New York City. But the study found the Big Apple doesn’t hold onto those residents, who tend to drift away after their mid-30s.

Why is this so important? According to researchers E.J. McMahon and Robert Scardamalia, “a state, region or community that attracts young people – and retains them as they build careers, businesses and families – is in a good position to build for the future.”

There is a glimmer of good news in the numbers.

Upstate has seen a surge of population ages 20-24, which the authors attribute to the growth in undergraduate enrollment in the region’s colleges and universities.

But the prospects are not good. Upstate is not producing enough economic opportunity to hold the human capital it educates, with job growth a paltry 1.3 percent annually over the last couple of years, half of the rate in the 1990s, when young people left nonetheless.

There is some circularity to the conclusions drawn by the report.

The authors observe that there has been a pronounced out-migration of New York residents in their most productive work years, “(p)resumably … in search of economic opportunities their home region was failing to produce.”

The “main hope for reversing … long-term decline”? That would be “to create enough jobs to hold onto more of its … college graduates.”

In other words, the best chance of stopping a population drain of residents who are seeking better job opportunities elsewhere would be to create more job opportunities here.

Now, why didn’t anyone think of that earlier?

One other thing is worth noting…..

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