Located at the southern reaches of the Great Lakes region in southern Ohio, the City of Dayton faces similar challenges to other ‘rust belt’ cities. Dayton’s population peaked in the 1960’s at approximately 260,000 and since then has declined to the current population of 141,527. Parts of the city have upwards of 30% vacancy rate. Despite these challenges, the city staff is determined and energized to develop a more sustainable city so that Dayton becomes a ‘city of choice’ for the region and beyond.