And New York City is at the core of the phoenix-like rise in US manufacturing.

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Such a phoenix-like rise begs for a fall, of course, and it came.

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Sadly, the image of someone using hard work and talent to rise phoenix-like from the ashes of an unhappy youth is more myth than reality.

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In an effort to arrest its decline, the city has launched an initiative called "Rise of the Phoenix, " in which it provides free rent for a year to office and retail tenants in exchange for multiyear leases.

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