When John Edwards announced he was withdrawing from his presidential bid, a spokesperson indicated that Edwards fell prey to the superior position of "celebrity" candidates. To be sure, Edwards' boyish good looks couldn't keep up with Obama's skin color and charisma or Hillary's polarizing personality and electrifying husband.
We speak of politicians using first names when they are unique enough ("Hilary" and "Mitt), or simply their last when needed ("McCain" or "Edwards"). We asume a casual familiarity nearly identical to that which we assume with celebrities like Britney or Jessica. But these aren't our friends, or simple entertainers. At least, they're not supposed to be. Somehow, I don't think voters used to speak about Abraham or George (of course, Teddy was an incredible persona and they did like Ike - but they were exceptions).
So what's changed? Almost assuredly, it's the information age and our ready ability to see the candidates all the time. To hear the sound bites in near real time. It's that near instant transfer of information, and our mindless lapping at the bowl of group think, that pushes our candidates to change their positions to match our perceived moods. And we cry foul when they flip-flop. But they flip when we flop. It's now no more than a well-choreographed dance.
As I talk about politics with friends, colleagues and mere acquaintances I am struck by the role the national races place in that conversation. Like "Lost" or "24", these elections result in sound bite conversations, speculative pronouncement and personal invective. The only real difference is that no one network has a contract for the show, and the writer strike doesn't leave us pining for fresh material.
But these national races are about what is nearly our largest community, and the one that in many ways impacts us least. It is regional and local politics that shape our lives and our community. Do you have kids? Do you know who's running for school board? Who's going to be your next mayor? What are their plans for economic development? Who's going to win your next aldermanic election? What do they think about safety in your neighborhood or the development plans for that eyesore on the corner?
We get one vote in an ocean of votes for the national elections. Don't get me wrong, we have not only a civic duty but also a social duty to cast that vote. It is profoundly important. But the vote you casually don't cast for school board or alderman or judge may be more important.
Just because you don't see the ads on TV and don't feel comfortable enough to call a candidate by their first name doesn't mean you should drop out of the process. To the contrary, that lack of celebrity is evidence of the striking realness, the humanity, of the candidate. They are more like you than unlike you, and the decisions they make will shape your life, your family's life and life in your community. Get engaged. Learn the candidates and vote.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Downer Avenue
Nearly everyone agrees that Downer Avenue could be Milwaukee’s finest retail district and that it has not realized its potential. Most agree that significant development and investment activity is required to improve Downer’s prospects. Despite that consensus, few developments in Milwaukee have been as polarizing as the current redevelopment of Downer.
Many neighbors are vocal for dynamic change and have favored the development, and others have and continue to oppose it vigorously. As a neighbor, I’ve encountered the passion firsthand. As a real estate developer, I haven’t seen a development face such profound public scrutiny.
The substantial investment being made through this redevelopment brings the promise of sunny days to Downer merchants. But the current lawsuit and recent ruling cast long shadows. Uncertainty threatens to cast a pall on the profound progress already made with additions like Café Hollander. It seems some may have lost sight of what matters most for Downer.
Our merchants need the shadow lifted. As neighbors, we must encourage and support the businesses on Downer. They need certainty of plan, and they require the infrastructure being built. They require progress now. It’s time to step past vitriolic argument and to pull together to develop a better community.
Many neighbors are vocal for dynamic change and have favored the development, and others have and continue to oppose it vigorously. As a neighbor, I’ve encountered the passion firsthand. As a real estate developer, I haven’t seen a development face such profound public scrutiny.
The substantial investment being made through this redevelopment brings the promise of sunny days to Downer merchants. But the current lawsuit and recent ruling cast long shadows. Uncertainty threatens to cast a pall on the profound progress already made with additions like Café Hollander. It seems some may have lost sight of what matters most for Downer.
Our merchants need the shadow lifted. As neighbors, we must encourage and support the businesses on Downer. They need certainty of plan, and they require the infrastructure being built. They require progress now. It’s time to step past vitriolic argument and to pull together to develop a better community.
Monday, January 28, 2008
What Are You Lookin' At?
Here’s a quick exercise. Count how many people you actually engaged face-to-face today who are not your family, not your co-workers, and not regular (everyday) work related folks. Now, be really honest. By engagement, by the way, I don’t mean mindless small talk about the weather. So how many is it? I feel confident that a meaningful number of us can honestly say “zero.”
Engagement. It’s a funny word. It can be a date, or an excuse not to go on one (“sorry, I have a previous engagement”). You can engage gears. You can engage someone in conversation. It can be the period prior to marriage. Someone charismatic is often described as “engaging.” You can engage the enemy.
So what’s my deal with engagement? I exalt involvement over complacency. I would ask us to look closely at our community and to identify our role in it. In short, I ask us all to become engaged.
Try this: when you get your coffee in the morning, or see a stranger at the gas station or in the parking lot, or ride up the elevator with someone, look them right in the eye and smile. A real smile. Then pay attention. How do they react? When they smile (and they will, if they don’t think you’re psychotic), how does it make you feel? Watch them as they walk away.
That is engagement at its barest level. You share a simple moment of clear communication. Is that engagement enough? I believe that interaction provokes social intimacy and that social intimacy inspires a sense of community. I hold that sense of community at the highest level, and I strongly believe that we need to cultivate it. Do I think a smile cultivates community? I do think a smile helps build a sense of community.
But that smile is really just the start. What we all really need to do is actively participate in our communal lives. I know we’re all busy. We all face pressures. I know how tired I feel when I get home lots of nights. At the same time, every day offers opportunities for pain-free, energy-free engagement. So if we’re so tired and busy and stressed, how can we fill our days with anything else? How can we engage?
One answer is simple: “Be Present”. That clear look in the eye. That smile. That’s active engagement. But, that’s just the start. That’s the baseline. That’s the bare minimum.
We all need to push just a little harder. If we could find one or two hours a week of time, we could make a real difference somewhere. That’s less than 5% of a typical work week. It’s 10-20 minutes a day. We just need to take time.
There are a lot of things we can do with that time. We could volunteer at our kids’ schools, at church, at a senior living home. We could tutor kids. We could help a neighbor do some work in their yard. We could help at a neighborhood group.
To me, the most important part of that kind of engagement isn’t the work accomplished, it’s the ties created. You will get to know more people. You will have more community context. You may start to wonder how the people you meet are doing. When they’re well, you’ll revel in their happiness. When they’re down, you’ll be concerned. In short, you’ll become more socially engaged.
Community is about where we live. It’s also about how we define the web of social networks around us. It’s about how we think of the world outside of a simple address. It’s a combination of simple geography and complex social interactions. At its heart, community is mutable. That is, community is inherently changeable. What we must avoid is complacency. We must not let community happen to us, we must create it for ourselves. And, we must see that we are a part of other people’s community.
So really, the question isn’t “What are you lookin’ at?” The question is: “What do you see?”
Engagement. It’s a funny word. It can be a date, or an excuse not to go on one (“sorry, I have a previous engagement”). You can engage gears. You can engage someone in conversation. It can be the period prior to marriage. Someone charismatic is often described as “engaging.” You can engage the enemy.
So what’s my deal with engagement? I exalt involvement over complacency. I would ask us to look closely at our community and to identify our role in it. In short, I ask us all to become engaged.
Try this: when you get your coffee in the morning, or see a stranger at the gas station or in the parking lot, or ride up the elevator with someone, look them right in the eye and smile. A real smile. Then pay attention. How do they react? When they smile (and they will, if they don’t think you’re psychotic), how does it make you feel? Watch them as they walk away.
That is engagement at its barest level. You share a simple moment of clear communication. Is that engagement enough? I believe that interaction provokes social intimacy and that social intimacy inspires a sense of community. I hold that sense of community at the highest level, and I strongly believe that we need to cultivate it. Do I think a smile cultivates community? I do think a smile helps build a sense of community.
But that smile is really just the start. What we all really need to do is actively participate in our communal lives. I know we’re all busy. We all face pressures. I know how tired I feel when I get home lots of nights. At the same time, every day offers opportunities for pain-free, energy-free engagement. So if we’re so tired and busy and stressed, how can we fill our days with anything else? How can we engage?
One answer is simple: “Be Present”. That clear look in the eye. That smile. That’s active engagement. But, that’s just the start. That’s the baseline. That’s the bare minimum.
We all need to push just a little harder. If we could find one or two hours a week of time, we could make a real difference somewhere. That’s less than 5% of a typical work week. It’s 10-20 minutes a day. We just need to take time.
There are a lot of things we can do with that time. We could volunteer at our kids’ schools, at church, at a senior living home. We could tutor kids. We could help a neighbor do some work in their yard. We could help at a neighborhood group.
To me, the most important part of that kind of engagement isn’t the work accomplished, it’s the ties created. You will get to know more people. You will have more community context. You may start to wonder how the people you meet are doing. When they’re well, you’ll revel in their happiness. When they’re down, you’ll be concerned. In short, you’ll become more socially engaged.
Community is about where we live. It’s also about how we define the web of social networks around us. It’s about how we think of the world outside of a simple address. It’s a combination of simple geography and complex social interactions. At its heart, community is mutable. That is, community is inherently changeable. What we must avoid is complacency. We must not let community happen to us, we must create it for ourselves. And, we must see that we are a part of other people’s community.
So really, the question isn’t “What are you lookin’ at?” The question is: “What do you see?”
Where Do You Live?
"Where do you live?" I don't know when it started, but I realize I ask that question of virtually every person I meet. Obsessively (or is it compulsively?). In any case, I feel a need to know that little bit of information about someone. Somehow the answer means a lot. I don't mean where they actually live. I'm not a stalker, though some people look at me like I might be when I ask that question. What I mean is: how someone answers the question reveals a lot about how they view where they live.
Here's what I find interesting: we all share some common parts of our address. I live at 1234 N. Main Street, the East Side, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, North America, Western Hemisphere, Earth, Solar System, Milky Way, Universe. Here, we share everything after Milwaukee. It's the stuff before it that defines us. But what answers do I get? And, what do I think they suggest?
Over the course of the last 50 years or so, American community has changed in lots of profound ways. I have all kinds of theories about those changes (if you're interested, there's also a great book called Bowling Alone by Robert Putnam who is smart and actually credible). Changing demographics, automobiles, television, other advancing technology, economic changes and any other number of factors have deeply influenced the ways we contemplate our communities. Arguments abound as to what caused the changes, but there's no denying that we've changed.
How have we changed? There's one example I always go back to: front porches became back patios. Not only is that physically true, but it's also a metaphor for our communities: in many ways we have turned our backs on our immediate neighborhoods and instead have concentrated on smaller and smaller community elements. Downtown Milwaukee once had lots of people. But people fled the cities starting in the 1930's looking for the suburban ideal. Now, look at our suburbs. If you live in them, where can you walk? In some of Milwaukee’s suburbs you have to walk on the street because there aren't even sidewalks. Now, I recognize that's not true everywhere. Most suburbs have an urbanized area that fosters walking and a more communal environment. I also recognize that walking isn't the ideal for everyone. But, I do believe that walking creates a different type of interaction with our neighborhood.
Why do I think that kind of interaction is important? When you pass your neighbor and give a friendly wave, you've engaged them. When they tell you about their son or daughter or dog or parent, you've gotten to know them a little. When you know them even a little, you become at least partially invested in their well-being. Generally, I believe that interaction provokes social intimacy and that social intimacy inspires a sense of community. I hold that sense of community at the highest level, and strongly believe that we need to cultivate it.
So, this brings me back to the answers I get to my question: "Where do you live?" For this, let's assume they live at 123 E. Main St., Apt. 409 (Main Street Lofts). If I ask, and the person tells me their full address I think a couple things. First, I realize they must not think I'm a sociopathic lunatic. Second, I think that they very narrowly define their community. They feel insulated. What about when they say "Main Street Lofts"? Then, I think that they have developed a communal sense for Main Street Lofts, and that they feel some broader sense of community (of course, it could also be that they simply think I would recognize the name, but that's no fun for this exercise). What about when they say "The Third Ward"? Now their community extends beyond their apartment, beyond their building and into the world around them. I like this. But, what about when they say "Milwaukee"? Now I find it harder to interpret. Since I'm from Milwaukee, I don't let that answer stand. I ask again. My compulsion hasn't been satisfied.
But why do I find this interesting? I think that our personal perception of community is overwhelmingly important. Because as a real estate developer, I don't want to lose sight of my professional responsibility. Developers have a pretty mixed reputation. In the end, though, we create, manage and take care of people's homes. We build their communities, or at least a profoundly important component of them.
So I’m passionate about community. In this blog, I will exalt involvement over complacency. I'm going to ask each of us to consider where we live and who we are. I'm going to ask us to examine critically how we get involved. In the end, I'm going to ask that we each actively consider our community, and that we become active in it. So, let's start with a quick question: Where do you live?
Here's what I find interesting: we all share some common parts of our address. I live at 1234 N. Main Street, the East Side, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, North America, Western Hemisphere, Earth, Solar System, Milky Way, Universe. Here, we share everything after Milwaukee. It's the stuff before it that defines us. But what answers do I get? And, what do I think they suggest?
Over the course of the last 50 years or so, American community has changed in lots of profound ways. I have all kinds of theories about those changes (if you're interested, there's also a great book called Bowling Alone by Robert Putnam who is smart and actually credible). Changing demographics, automobiles, television, other advancing technology, economic changes and any other number of factors have deeply influenced the ways we contemplate our communities. Arguments abound as to what caused the changes, but there's no denying that we've changed.
How have we changed? There's one example I always go back to: front porches became back patios. Not only is that physically true, but it's also a metaphor for our communities: in many ways we have turned our backs on our immediate neighborhoods and instead have concentrated on smaller and smaller community elements. Downtown Milwaukee once had lots of people. But people fled the cities starting in the 1930's looking for the suburban ideal. Now, look at our suburbs. If you live in them, where can you walk? In some of Milwaukee’s suburbs you have to walk on the street because there aren't even sidewalks. Now, I recognize that's not true everywhere. Most suburbs have an urbanized area that fosters walking and a more communal environment. I also recognize that walking isn't the ideal for everyone. But, I do believe that walking creates a different type of interaction with our neighborhood.
Why do I think that kind of interaction is important? When you pass your neighbor and give a friendly wave, you've engaged them. When they tell you about their son or daughter or dog or parent, you've gotten to know them a little. When you know them even a little, you become at least partially invested in their well-being. Generally, I believe that interaction provokes social intimacy and that social intimacy inspires a sense of community. I hold that sense of community at the highest level, and strongly believe that we need to cultivate it.
So, this brings me back to the answers I get to my question: "Where do you live?" For this, let's assume they live at 123 E. Main St., Apt. 409 (Main Street Lofts). If I ask, and the person tells me their full address I think a couple things. First, I realize they must not think I'm a sociopathic lunatic. Second, I think that they very narrowly define their community. They feel insulated. What about when they say "Main Street Lofts"? Then, I think that they have developed a communal sense for Main Street Lofts, and that they feel some broader sense of community (of course, it could also be that they simply think I would recognize the name, but that's no fun for this exercise). What about when they say "The Third Ward"? Now their community extends beyond their apartment, beyond their building and into the world around them. I like this. But, what about when they say "Milwaukee"? Now I find it harder to interpret. Since I'm from Milwaukee, I don't let that answer stand. I ask again. My compulsion hasn't been satisfied.
But why do I find this interesting? I think that our personal perception of community is overwhelmingly important. Because as a real estate developer, I don't want to lose sight of my professional responsibility. Developers have a pretty mixed reputation. In the end, though, we create, manage and take care of people's homes. We build their communities, or at least a profoundly important component of them.
So I’m passionate about community. In this blog, I will exalt involvement over complacency. I'm going to ask each of us to consider where we live and who we are. I'm going to ask us to examine critically how we get involved. In the end, I'm going to ask that we each actively consider our community, and that we become active in it. So, let's start with a quick question: Where do you live?
Well, for now it may just be me...
Welcome to my blog. I've never been able to say that before. Now I've said it and I realize it's not a very good opening line. Drat.
This blog springs from my passion for community. I believe that people can achieve at their highest level when in groups. Individual effort is leveraged by communal endeavor. Alone, we are just that.
I am a real estate developer by profession and by passion. I am not a New Urbanist. I am an URBANIST. I appreciate what the CNU aspires to. I believe they are driven by ideals consistent with my hopes for our built environment. But I find myself drawn inexorably to nostalgic reflections on what cities were as I contemplate what our communities should be. These are not new ideas. They are as old as the first society.
In this blog, I will consider any and all topics. They won't all be about real estate, and they won't all be about cities. But they will almost all involve the way people interact with each other, their environment and they community. After all, most of us draw a significant portion of our identity from our social context. It's what matters.
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