Lately I've been wondering what I can do to help Cleveland other than being a consumer. I don't have a lot of money which could be my most major road block. Without money you can't start a business, donate to a local cause, or even rehab a house. I can volunteer my time. That's relatively free and helping others is its own reward. That I will start doing more of. What else? I care about Cleveland and want others to care about it too... so I will continue to write this blog? I know the hate and fear that is out there aimed at CLE and I want to show everyone that this city (in the right areas) is a great place to live, work, and have fun.
I want to be honest about it too though. It's not Shangri-La by any means... but it's coming around. It's came around before though. A few times actually. So what's to keep it from hitting the skids again? It's about here in my process that I usually run out of answers.
Eventually, as history has taught us, this progress will slow down and we will start the decline again. It's nice because right now we're past the "If you build it, they will come" stage. In the 90's we built a whole bunch of stuff. Stadiums, science centers, halls of fame... but they didn't come. Well not to stay anyway. We actually watched as they kept leaving. Now we have a medical mart and a new convention center. We're currently rehabbing old office buildings and turning them into apartments because the demand to rent downtown is so high and that's a great thing. There's demand! Slowly as the population of downtown grows and the last of the old office towers are converted to apartments, businesses will have no choice but to move to where the workforce is. Since there won't be many office towers left, more will need to be built... sorry, now we're back to speculation again. That's the unknown hope that a lot of people are hanging their hats on here and in many other large cities. Unfortunately corporations continue to move out of downtown Cleveland for cheaper rent and less taxes. The Exurbs (Urban>Inner ring suburb>Outer ring suburb>Exurb) have become the new place to escape to. People see the promise of cheap land, convenient highways, and big box stores... the American dream?
Remember when people thought the world was flat and was positioned at the center of the universe?
Remember when asbestos was a safe fire retardant material?
Remember when 4 out of 5 doctors said smoking was OK?
Remember when the American dream was owning your own house on a plot of land surrounded by a white picket fence in the suburbs? It sounds like what we were all told and is a great idea in theory. You get to be King of your castle and rule everything in it. You make the rules and no one can come and tell you what to do. It's safe and the schools are great. The local chicken joint has crazy Tuesdays where you can feed your whole family for $7.99. It's what's best for you and your family and I don't fault you for thinking that. You were sold a red, white, and blue promise that few turned down. The profits were even there initially. Everything seemed to be working just fine...
Unfortunately, like in some of the examples above, planners didn't look far enough into the future to see what the long term effects were... even more unfortunate is, like all of the examples above, we were wrong.... but the most unfortunate thing is, there's political juggernaut that continues to push this broken belief forward. It takes a big person to admit that they were wrong and even harder to admit that we trusted them.
See I've always had a hunch that my feelings towards things of this nature were close. I just never had actual proof... until I started digging. Once you start looking for it, you find out that there are others who have done the work for you and share in your mindset. They have set up a road map to help others turn this Titanic around. It's a work in progress but it begins to correct the sins of the past. OK, humor me for a minute and do some reading:
First, go to www.strongtowns.org and read The Growth Ponzi Scheme. It's going to make logical sense if not kinda blow your mind. Then at the bottom of that page read through Days 1-5 of the series. After you read it you'll want to get as much info on it as you can if a) you're like me and soak this kinda stuff up like a sponge so that you can apply it to your life or b) because you think it's bullsh!t and want to find the flaw in it to expose it. It's fine either way because it's something that's not being discussed across America as much as it should be.
Next, read From the Mayor's Office on the same site and pretend that this is your mayor talking to his staff about your town. There are some very insightful ideas here on how to stop the status quo in local government. Cities are trying to attract people and businesses while trying to re-brand themselves but are doing it the wrong way. Don't keep up with the Jones because they're just stupid... play a different game.
Lastly (for now), read The Cost of Auto Orientation still on the same site. This is actually something that's catching on a little but no one understands why. You read about bike lanes and street cars and you think it's all about nostalgia or being different but it's not. It's about choices. It's about letting the numbers and not the cars dictate spending, planning, and future costs.
After all that reading, take a look at this video from our friends at 19 Action News:
Now take what you've learned from Strong Towns and apply it to this issue. Here was my attempt on Facebook:
If everyone who had the means would walk, bike, or take a bus or the rapid to W25th, our city wouldn't have to waste the money dealing with how to bow down to suburban cars in an urban area. This is what cities have to do to pay for the empty swaths of land used for parking lots. The more people that use alternate forms of transportation, the less parking spots they take up. The less parking spots they take up, the less we have to deal with this "issue".
I'm still learning and trying to craft my beliefs but I think I'm on the right track... and that makes me happy. I've decided to write a short outline called "What I believe." I'll share it with you as soon as I finish it up... although the more I learn the more I realize that it'll never be truly finished. Life allows you to change your mind and take a new path based on what you learn. Thank God for that!
We're at a crossroads (again) and any lack of progress on these types of things this time around may mean that we could see our first "I am Legend" type ghost-town... our first abandoned highway... our next bankrupt major American city. It all begins with you redefining the American dream to make sense for you, your family, and your city. One where the numbers dictate your decisions and one where everyone benefits including future generations. It's time to reconcile past mistakes, admit we were wrong, and move forward with a new plan. A new plan based on living within our means and still being able to enjoy life.
Thanks to StrongTowns.org for hopefully being OK with me posting links to their site. If you like what you see, please consider becoming a member.
We're at a crossroads (again) and any lack of progress on these types of things this time around may mean that we could see our first "I am Legend" type ghost-town... our first abandoned highway... our next bankrupt major American city. It all begins with you redefining the American dream to make sense for you, your family, and your city. One where the numbers dictate your decisions and one where everyone benefits including future generations. It's time to reconcile past mistakes, admit we were wrong, and move forward with a new plan. A new plan based on living within our means and still being able to enjoy life.
Thanks to StrongTowns.org for hopefully being OK with me posting links to their site. If you like what you see, please consider becoming a member.
Love you Cleveland. Good day!
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