Note to Cities: Richard Florida is not the messiah
Hayley Richardson | Tue, Jan 22nd, 2008 | Category: Commentary | Tags: hayley richardson, barack obama, facebook, richard florida, messiah, note to cities, philly fellows, youth involvement
My recent trip to New Hampshire, and a virtual argument between our own Dave Steele and the “untouchable” Richard Florida have unexpectedly and cogently intertwined.
Both raise the question of citizen participation, and force us to examine the decidedly un-sexy ingredients to building a sustainable city.
Campaigning for Obama in rural New Hampshire, I met countless people who have been involved in every primary season since they were old enough to vote. Granted, New Hampshire is the ideal incubator for democracy, where the towns are tiny and everyone looks the same. However, it struck me that people are generally pretty involved in making their home a better place to live.
And what then, of involvement in cities? In the post-industrial age, Richard Florida argues that its the young, creative class that cities should be trying to attract; they bring energy, dynamism, and the demand for better services. But let’s take a step back; what are the real, tangible benefits brought about by this new wave of urbanities?
We fill up coffeeshops with jagged haircuts and laptops, we keep boutiques in business and performance houses booked solid. We ride bikes, we do art --sort of. But the question asked of me over and over again by New Hampshirites was a fair one; what am I doing in Philadelphia to better my community? An astounding number of quality of life issues are decided at the local level, yet I was forced to admit that I don’t know the names of my neighborhood council members, have never been to a city council meeting.
This post isn’t about the political apathy of my generation; that subject has certainly been exhausted. What I’m more concerned with is how to harness the power of the so-called creative class to make a difference that transcends the aesthetic.
Granted, we are a notoriously fickle and transitory demographic, just as likely to move to Namibia as we are to put down roots in a specific community. However, we are also blessed with the willingness to work, long strange hours for a cause, and generally have a strong sense of the need to redress urban wrongs of the past. At the very least, we’d like it to be done in a more environmentally and socially just manner this time around.
Perhaps the Mayor’s office in Philadelphia would do well to encourage community participation and involvement by this coveted demographic. The Philly Fellows Program is a start, but we need more; a section on the city’s website catered towards the 20-something that would itemize easy ways to get involved, a Facebook group for “Philly’s Future,” a public abolishment of nepotism. Right now, it seems that the creative class is bobbing around like sea-horses, forever in-between assignments, our cell phones still bearing the area codes from whence we came. Cities should offer us a sense of place and a reason to stay, or all that creativity will be for naught.
Dave Steele
Tue, Jan 22, 2008 at 8:04pm
Thanks for the post, Hayley. I don’t think you can be faulted for not participating in your local process if that process is dominated by an “old boys club” that’s not open to new people and new ideas. So many of our cities are run by a closed door club that repels those who aren’t in the club. Maybe the way to harness the “creativity” of the creative class is visionary leadership and a more open process. Maybe that’s what we should want for all of our cities, whether we’re interested in attracting “creative class” or not.
-----
Brendan
Wed, Jan 23, 2008 at 9:30pm
You might be interested in groups like GLUE and Neighbors Project. There is a growing movement right now to get the twenty- and thirtysomething crowd involved in their neighborhoods.
Brendan
Wed, Jan 23, 2008 at 9:32pm
Sorry, should have included links:
GLUE: http://gluespace.wordpress.com/
NP: http://neighborsproject.org/
Dan in Milwaukee
Thu, May 15, 2008 at 2:54am
Self-segregating by age/consumer demographic is a recipe for kidultism, glass ceilings, and general disenfranchisement. If you want to know what is going on and how to get connected, get to know older people and involve yourself--don’t wait for an invitation.
If you’re in a fixer-upper area, reconcile yourself to the fact that any major urban changes--just on a neighborhood level--take at least around 10 years to happen when they’re moving super fast.
In response to the idea that “Cities should offer us a sense of place and a reason to stay” I say cities can’t offer you anything--people, relationships you forge in them can, and this also takes time. If you have cold feet when it comes to commitment, don’t blame the city.
Disneyland and other tourist destinations offer ready made culture to swoop in and enjoy as a kind of service before you jet off to somewhere else. But if you want deeper ties and a real culture or community, you have to deal with the pothole politics and everything else over a long time. Like 10, 20 years at least. It’s an investment with risks, costs , and virtually guaranteed regrets or what-ifs, but if you’re active in one area that long the one thing you shouldn’t lack is texture, depth, and a history. Like the “wear sunscreen” speech goes, this becomes more important with age:
“Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.”