There’s an organization called CEOs For Cities that has weighed in heavily on the question of how American cities should address their futures. According to Carol Coletta, the organization’s president, “Many of our communities are built on outdated assumptions.”
“We thought gas would always be cheap and plentiful, we could always grow our way out of congestion and new sources of labor would always be plentiful. We assumed Americans were willing to abandon a public life, content to live privately in their ever-expanding suburban homes.”
Ms. Coletta claims that there are new realities to be faced and that the problem is, “Our strategies of city-making haven’t quite caught up to a new and very different world.” (city-making?)
Wait…there’s more! “Talent, connections, distinctiveness and innovation. These are ‘city vitals’-dimensions on which next generation cities will succeed. Having a strong and vibrant central city is an important accelerator of each of these vitals.”
“These aren’t your typical list of urban issues or urban solutions. They don’t fit easily into the organizational structure at City Hall or our civic structure. Is there a Department of Talent in San Jose? A Director of Distinctiveness? Someone devoted to Connections?”
Does anyone understand what Ms. Coletta is talking about? Terms like “city vitals” and “city-making” make my teeth hurt. It’s propaganda. It’s the language used to sell “community” as a commodity.
Ms. Coletta spoke to the Chamber’s recent trip to Chicago. Perhaps someone from that trip could give an explanation…
Clearly, Ms. Coletta is a “thought leader.”
Go to our web site http://www.ceosforcities.org. As I explained in my presentation, City Vitals are the four things cities need to be very, very good at doing to succeed. The problem is, responsibility for these things is scattered, unfixed and unmanaged. That’s the point I was making. If you aren’t managing your ability to develop, attract and retain talent, you are missing an opportunity.
And how does distinctiveness sell community as a commodity? Distinctiveness is the very antithesis of commodity.
Sorry to make your teeth hurt.
I don’t know about Director of Talent or Director of Distinctiveness, but we have several Sheriffs of Shinola, Managers of Malarkey, Bishops of Bull#*%&, and Prefects of Prevarication.
Carol:
Thanks for your comments. Attaching “vitals” to a city reminds me of anthropomorphism. To me, what’s vital to a city are things like clean parks, maintained streets, and open libraries.
Re: your comment, “distinctiveness is the very antithesis of commodity,” sort of escapes me.
Pete Campbell