EAST LANSING, Mich. — It was announced this week that the Lansing-East Lansing MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area) ranked first in three job growth categories in a report released by Urban Institute’s MetroTrends.

The report tracked growth in jobs since June 2009 in 16 industries, including financial activities, retail trade and government. The Lansing-East Lansing MSA made a tremendous showing by taking the top spots in three of the 16 categories. The region ranked first in Goods Producing, Manufacturing and Transportation and Utilities categories with growth listed as 17.1 percent, 23.3 percent and 21.7 percent respectively.

“This is the kind of national recognition that we, as a region, should not only want, but expect. Clearly, we are gaining respect and attention as a genuine economic engine to the state and country. Something very special is happening in Greater Lansing like never before,” said Lansing Economic Area Partnership (LEAP, Inc.) President and CEO Bob Trezise. “Our region is continually growing in not only manufacturing, but in other industries as well. This is the exact time to embrace our success and hit the accelerator hard to take advantage of our national momentum.”

“Our economy is growing and diversifying. We have seen increases in jobs and population and improvements in the housing market, which we believe is a testament to the talented workforce and high quality of life that is found in the Greater Lansing region,” said East Lansing Community Development Administrator Lori Mullins.

This latest MetroTrends report comes on the heels of many other awards and honors the region has received, including being named in the nation’s Top 10 Best Cities for Young Adults by Kiplinger and winning the IBM Smarter Cities Challenge. East Lansing and Meridian Township have also been named among the seven top-performing communities in the state at fostering entrepreneurial growth and economic development by the University of Michigan-Dearborn’s Center for Innovation Research.