“The Great Good Place”

I am very excited to meet Dr. Ray Oldenburg this coming week. Oldenburg is the author of The Great Good Place, which began the conversation about the importance of “third spaces” like coffee shops, cafes, parks and public gathering spaces.  My friends at St. Petersburg Preservation are bringing him into town for a lecture and were gracious enough to arrange for us to meet.

Place makers today take for granted the idea of the importance of the third space – that which is not home or work.  Yet when Dr. Oldenburg first published his book in 1989, this was a revolutionary as Robert Putnam’s Bowling Alone or Richard Florida’s Rise of the Creative Class.  Third spaces today are seen as key drivers in successful places because of the social interaction they engender, the equality of status they convey upon citizens and the general good feelings (love if you will!) they create.  Yet less than a generation ago, these things were thought frivolous and ‘nice to have’ but not necessary.  How far we have come and we have pioneers like Dr. Oldenburg to thank for the great places we now enjoy.

Colorado Approves Ride Share

This is significant. Colorado approved statewide legislation to allow ride share programs such as Uber. These types of amenities are becoming “must haves” especially for the mobile, young professional crowd. These services are typically fought by traditional cab and limo companies but consumers obviously love them. The first state domino has tipped and you can expect many more to follow. Interesting how Colorado seems to be leading on lots of issues!

Full story here: http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_25907057/colorado-first-authorize-lyft-and-ubers-ridesharing-services

New York City Loves Bike Share

Much like the change of heart seen over pedestrian only Times Square, New Yorkers apparently love the one year old bike share program. Decried by some as ugly, dangerous and even totalitarian, the success of the program should embolden other communities to look at their own implementations.

Story here: http://mediamatters.org/blog/2014/05/27/one-year-later-new-yorkers-love-totalitarian-bi/199467

Remembering Manchester Co-Creator Tony Wilson

Today is the five year anniversary of the passing of Tony Wilson, the English TV & radio personality who was key figure in creating the Manchester music scene in the late 70’s through the 80’s and beyond.  (Check out the 2002 movie “24 Hour Party People” for a semi-autobiographical portrayal of Wilson and the Manchester scene.)

Wilson was a “co-creator” as I describe in my book; a creator of the content that makes cities interesting, fun and lovable.  Wilson was not an official city maker, like a mayor or councilman, but his impact on the city was no less profound.  He was an unabashed lover of Manchester and it showed in his work as he championed local music and artists and founded the famous Hacienda nightclub that launched the “Madchester” scene to the world.

I only met Tony once, in 2006.  While I was visiting Manchester, a mutual friend arranged a lunch meeting and I was just giddy with the prospect of talking to him.  I even brought a first edition 12” single of New Order’s Blue Monday.  His label, Factory, had produced it and famously, the cover artwork was so complex and expensive, they lost money of every record sold.  He smiled and told the story behind it and even signed it for me.

New Order's Blue Monday 12" Single

That day we talked about the unique role that music plays in creating identity for cities.  He talked about how a scene cannot be forced, but how cities can help facilitate the success of their local musicians and artists. Things like support for local venues that play original music or little things like rehearsal spaces where bands can make as much noise as they want.  He also talked about his annual music conference, called In the City that he and his wife had been producing.  It had become a SXSW type event where bands showcased to industry in the hopes of being discovered.

Tony clearly loved Manchester, and the city had come to love him as well.  His passion projects, Factory Records and The Hacienda had become central to the identity and the mythology of the city.  Tony was a central node in what made Manchester a great city though he was not an official city maker.  When he passed away in 2007, Manchester lost a great champion and “lover” of the city.

Every city has people like Tony that truly love their community and go way above and beyond ordinary citizenship and make their city better, more interesting and more lovable.  The problem is that we think Tony Wilsons just happen.  They magically appear like rare gifts for our cities.  And because we think of them like gifts, we actually don’t plan on how to use them or on how to create them.  We need to be intentional in our efforts to make more Tony Wilsons for our places.  We do that first by recognizing the co-creators in our midst and treasuring them the way we value an anchor business or institution.   Then we can ask how our communities might support and amplify what these co-creators are already naturally doing.

Tony Wilson was a rare champion for Manchester and he can never be replaced.   But he can be renewed if we encourage others to manifest their emotional engagement in their places by doing something for those places.  Step up, make some music and make a difference.

Loving the Circle City – Time Lapse of Mural

In May we conducted the Loving the Circle City  workshop for the young professional associations of Indianapolis.  Over 150 participants came up with many great ideas and insights into their community.  Below is the time lapse of the visual recording done by Michelle Royal.

TEDx Iowa City Video

On 11/11/11 it was my honor to be a speaker at the inaugural TEDx Iowa City event.  For a first time event, they knocked it out of the park with a great venue, cool stage and a wonderful array of speakers; local, national and international!

Marrying Your City

In the book I write about how city themed tattoos are the equivalent of “marrying” your city.  A tattoo, like a marriage, is a near permanent commitment and whenever I see people with their city etched into their body, I know that person has a special relationship with their place.  And perhaps none more so than Katie O’Keefe of Cleveland.

I wrote about her return to her hometown of Cleveland from New Jersey.  “I wanted to come back and make a difference in my city… in the end, Cleveland is my true love” she said.  In writing the book, I had several people tell me I had to meet Katie and try as we might, we could only connect via email and Facebook.  That changed this week as I finally got to meet her in person at aSaving Cities event in the Collinwood neighborhood of Cleveland.

Katie’s love and enthusiasm for her city shines through even more powerfully in person.  We talked about how she will often sing to the city as she rides her bike to work and how she likes to blow kisses to Cleveland.  Being around such passion and commitment is inspiring and she has a catalytic effect on whoever she encounters.

And the story has an even happier twist.  She introduced me to her boyfriend Sam, whom she met after he approached her and showed his sleeve tattoo of Cleveland that is almost the twin of her ink!  If it happened in a romantic comedy, you would say “c’mon!” that is too hokey.  But they met because of their mutual love affair with their city.

For me the lesson is that more of us should be willing to publically declare our love for our cities.  Perhaps we are not ready to get the tattoo, but we can all find some way to express that love and commitment through our words and actions.   When we do, we are likely to find many sympathetic and similar voices.  And then we know that we are not alone and might find not only comfort and support, but potential allies in future actions to improve our communities.

South Bend Declares Its Love

In June I wrote a piece called “The Surprising Life in America’s Dying Cities” for Infrastructurist.com.  The piece highlighted the amazing things that were happening in the cities designated by Newsweek Magazine in January as the 10 most “dying” places.  Needless to say, the cities on that list were not happy with the tag placed on them.  Since I published that article, one more of those “dying” cities has stepped up to declare the rumors of their demise being greatly exaggerated.

South Bend, Indiana was number eight on the Newsweek list.  And local radio personality Tori James did not like it. But not having budgets to counter the publicity, she decided that South Bend needed to remind itself of the good things it had in the community.  She came up with the idea that the citizens should write “love notes” to the city.  She took the idea to Downtown South Bend Inc. and they decided to run with it.  Leveraging the radio station and the local paper they were able to get word of the project out to South Bend.  They put actual mailboxes in several downtown shops and invited people to drop off their notes in person.  Online submissions came from all over the country as hundreds of love notes came in.

Last week the city declared “I Love South Bend” day and the love notes were posted in the windows of shops throughout downtown.  Local artists were brought in to paint the windows and seam together the notes into displays of the love and affection people have for their city.

While things like the Grand Rapids Lip Dub might get more external attention, one cannot underestimate the impact of these simple, heartfelt efforts such as South Bend has done. This project was BY them and FOR them.  A declaration of love and connection that becomes part of a longer term effort to improve the relationship between city and citizen.  Every community would do well to reflect on that relationship and hopefully do so without a scare or an outside threat.

More Photos

Does New York City Love You Back?

Does NYC love you back? This new app and website tracks the loves and hates people have for the city. As was pointed out by one resident, being able to express your emotions for the city, good or bad, is important.

People To Know – Katie O’Keefe of Cleveland, Ohio

In For the Love of Cities I wrote about Katie O’Keefe of Cleveland, Ohio as an example someone in love with their city.  Katie’s story of coming back to Cleveland is powerful, but what caught my attention was her commitment to Cleveland exemplified by her magnificent sleeve tattoo of the Cleveland skyline.  I noted in the book that city themed tattoos are akin to “marrying your city” as they are semi-permanent – easy enough to get into but rather hard and expensive to get out of.

Last week Katie made the cover of Issue Media Group’s Northeast, Ohio publication Freshwater Cleveland.  Take a look here to see the tattoos and learn more about her and other “boomerangs” who have returned to Cleveland and are playing key roles in shaping its future.

Surprising Life in America’s “Dying” Cities

Here is the piece I wrote for Infrastructurist.com which challenges the way we think about statistics.  In cities that Newsweek magazine declared to be “dying” we have seen amazing amounts of life and activity.  Recall the recent post that showed New Orleans was the “coolest city for startups”; on Newsweek’s list, New Orleans was the #1 dying city.

Check out the piece which includes the amazing Grand Rapids Lip Dub – if you have not seen the video yet, you must check out the incredible response that Grand Rapids came up with to being declared a dying city.

Why Streetcars Are Better Than Buses – Infrastructurist.com

Check out 36 Reasons Streetcars Are Better Than Buses – nice piece from Infrastructurist.com. My favorite reason – “unlike a bus, a streetcar informs and helps citizens to formulate an image of their city, even if folks don’t ride it. It is a feature of their public realm. Because of this, these streets get greater public attention.”

New Orleans – Coolest City for Start Ups!

In my book, I note that New Orleans “may be the most exciting city in America” right now due to the influx of talented, mission driven people who are rebuilding the city. Apparently the data and Inc. Magazine agree as they have named New Orleans “the coolest city for start ups” in the latest issue. Congratulations to New Orleans and all those amazing social entrepreneurs who recognize that they can make difference AND make a dollar!

Bicycling to Understand Cities

As I note in the book, bicycling allows you to connect with your city in very human and fun ways.  Here is an excellent essay on how bicycling leads to a better understanding of our cities.

http://www.boingboing.net/2011/05/21/understanding-cities.html

Group Hug St. Louis

The owners of STL Style, Jeff & Randy Vines, whom I profile in the book, have come up with an ingenious idea to spread the love in their hometown. The are sponsoring “Group Hug St. Louis” which invites people from all over the area to take a picture of themselves hugging something they love about the city. Could be a building, a piece of public art, a sign or even a person.

I love the simplicity and genuine heart that this idea shows.  Way to go guys!

Building Emotionally Connected Cities – Guest Post for Infrastructurist.com

Last month I had the pleasure to meet Melissa Lafsky, the editor of Infrastructurist.com. We were both invited to participate at the annual Forum on Land and the Built Environment at Harvard University. She asked me if I would be interested in writing something for them and I leapt at the chance.

Read the column here.

Infrastructurist.com is a must read for city champions everywhere. The breadth of what they cover is as broad as the definition of nfrastructure itself. Check it out!

St. Louis Group Hug!

My friends Jeff & Randy Vines, the owners of STL Style House in St. Louis whom I profile in the book, have come up with a brilliant idea to spread the love for their city.  They have created a project call the St. Louis Group Hug.  Over the next few weeks they are encouraging local citizens to“scour the city for your favorite people, places, and objects—ones that define our city and/or help to explain why you love St. Louis—and HUG these subjects for the camera. Get a friend to snap a photograph of you with your arms wrapped around your favorite St. Louis building, business, monument, person, etc.”

On June 2nd they are hosting a party at their store for a viewing party of the photo submissions.  They will gather other lovers of the city and who knows what other ideas, projects and actions may result.   I am sure beer will also be involved.

These guys are total lovers of their city – in what they do both personally and professionally.  Their enthusiasm for the city is infectious and I can’t wait to see the results of this event.  Small things like this that engage people, invite them to contribute and make them smile create an enormous amount of emotional capital for places.

Check them out here.

Akron – A Lovable City

I was interviewed by my hometown newspaper, the Akron Beacon Journal, about the book and of course whether I thought Akron was a lovable city.  Of course I am biased but I do believe that Akron (and other mid-sized Rust Belt cities like it) have a particular charm that makes them endearing.  At their heart, they are hard working, middle class cities that exemplify our concepts of working hard, building things and seeing the results of our efforts.

Cities like Akron feel fair in the sense that they give most (if not all) of us a chance to make something.  As much as we love superstar cities like New York or San Francisco, they often don’t feel very fair because of their high costs and perceived barriers to entry.

For the article, they photographed me in front of Luigi’s in downtown Akron. Luigi’s is a long-standing institution in Akron (since 1949 in the same family). I love their pizza! The restaurant is not the newest, most fashionable or trendiest, but there is something endearing about it that keeps people lined up out the door on weekends. Every city has a Luigi’s and every city can build on those elements that people respond to – history, tradition, community and fun.

Check out the full story here.

The Ripple Effect in Wayne, Michigan

After I spoke at the Rust Belt to Artist Belt conference in Detroit, a group from Wayne, Michigan decided to start a blog called “For the Love of Wayne.”  The blog “lets local people share their personal stories about why they love Wayne.”

They write:  This blog is a project of the Wayne Ripple Effect, a group of volunteer citizens dedicated to revitalization for the City of Wayne and was inspired by the book “For the Love of Cities” by Peter Kageyama.

I love it when ideas turn into action and they allowed me to do a guest post for the blog.  Congratulations Wayne, Michigan and keep up  the love!

Coverage in St. Petersburg Times

It is often hard to get coverage, let alone love from your local newspaper.  But that changed last week when the Business Editor for the Times, Bob Trigaux and I got together for an in depth interview and discussion about our cities.

St. Petersburg Times – 4/19/2011