Do Enterprise Zones have a role to play in delivering a place-based industrial strategy?

Abstract

Abstract We examine the body of evidence on Enterprise Zone policy with the objective of assessing its role in broader place-based industrial strategy. We conduct an extensive review, consolidate the empirical evidence into one place and examine it according to economic impact by zone type. We identify two gaps in the empirical knowledge that are systematically addressed through new research on several US Enterprise Zones to gain new evidence on their economic additionality. The article concludes by considering other, hitherto poorly explored, pathways by which zones may help an area to adapt to change and embrace longer-term economic futures.