It's Great 'n Dayton

Provide Input on City Priorities

Every 5 years cities, counties and states are required to submit to HUD (Department of Housing and Urban Development) what is called a Consolidated Plan for Housing and Community Development that identifies how the communities will spend funds that are awarded them to address certain needs.

HUD's distribution of funds is typically targeted for use to improve the quality of life for low income persons, provide affordable housing opportunities, eliminate slum/blight, and address emergency situations.

In Dayton funds have been used for code enforcement, nuisance abatement (housing demolition), rental rehab programs, support of Rebuilding Together Dayton, and support of other agencies doing things for teens, foreclosure prevention, support of Red Cross, etc.

Infrastructure projects are also eligible uses and street/alley resurfacing is a common use. Expenses associated with neighborhood development (ie. the running of the Priority Boards and distributing small neighborhood grants) can be covered by these funds.

Additional funds are available to communities to specifically use for housing and homelessness. Dayton's shelters are funded with these funds. Dayton has also used funds to offer downpayment assistance, rental rehabilitation, to do the Phoenix project, to invest in senior housing (Twin Towers), etc.

As you can see many good things happen in our community because of funds we receive from the federal government.

If you would like to learn more or would like to share your ideas and provide input the City of Dayton is holding a public forum on Saturday April 17 from 9 am- noon at the Dayton Convention Center. If you would like to attend, please call 333-3670.

By the way, HUD uses Census data to award much of the funding. Make sure you fill out your census form and return it!

The Ruse of the Creative Class: Apparently even Richard Florida doesn't believe in it anymore

The American Prospect, in its current issue has a story debunking myths about the creative class and reports how many communities have been duped by economist Richard Florida.

The gist of the story is that all the touting that was done about making cities desirable was wishful thinking at best and now scandalous to cities that are "so far gone" that they will never rebound. Florida goes as far as to say that the focus should be on locations that are already thriving.

Here's an except:

As Elmira and other cities on Florida's circuit dutifully carry out his instructions, though, the guru has grown less confident in their prospects. In a warm-up to his next book--The Great Reset, due out in April--Florida has been arguing that the recession has so decimated many cities and regions that it's time for the country to cut its losses and instead encourage growth in places that are prospering, like Silicon Valley, Boulder, Austin, and North Carolina's Research Triangle. And the rest? In his much-cited cover story in the March issue of The Atlantic--"How the Crash Will Reshape America"--he delivered the harsh news: "We need to be clear that ultimately, we can't stop the decline of some places, and that we would be foolish to try. ... Different eras favor different places, along with the industries and lifestyles those places embody. ... We need to let demand for the key products and lifestyles of the old order fall, and begin building a new economy, based on a new geography."

Dayton is mentioned in the article, as is DaytonCreate and c{space. A quote by our former mayor makes you wonder whether she actually understood the creative class at all:

Across the country, the battle to attract the creative class carries on. In Dayton, Ohio, billboards and T-shirts carry a new Richard Florida-inspired logo: "Dayton patented. Originals wanted." The city is building bikeways, passed an anti-discrimination ordinance in 2007 to increase its score on Florida's "tolerance index," and has given a local group called DaytonCREATE the use of a vacant bank, now called "c{space," "where they hang out and do a lot of their creativeness," Mayor Rhine McLin says.

A lot of good has come from efforts to retain and attract young professionals and the creative class. We're certainly not going to bring large industry into the community and leaders have talked about growing small and mid-size local businesses as a strategy. I hope there's more than one strategy and that we haven't put all of our eggs in one basket.

Were we sold an unrealizable dream?

Regional Planning...Give YOUR Input

Community Workshop Scheduled - Come Share YOUR Vision!

Dayton, OH – The Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission (MVRPC) will host community workshops to solicit public input on the future of land development in the Miami Valley Region.

GOING PLACES – An Integrated Land Use Vision for the Miami Valley Region is a 4-year regional land use planning initiative designed to bring people together to build a clear and shared future land use framework to guide development in the Miami Valley Region.

Following the 3-phase process, the current effort is focused on collecting information from people who live and work in the Region about what they envision for the future of the Region.

Do you have a vision for the Miami Valley Region in the year 2040? YOUR ideas and innovations are needed to help make the Miami Valley Region a better place to live, work and play! Come and join the Going Places discussion at any of the workshops in your area to share YOUR vision! The Greene County workshops are scheduled as follows (the link also includes workshops for other locations/counties):

January 5, 2010, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
John Bryan Center
100 Dayton Street
Yellow Springs, OH 45387

January 14, 2010, 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Beavercreek Twp Fire Station 61
2195 Dayton Xenia Road
Beavercreek, OH 45434

January 21, 2010, 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Fairborn Fire Department Training Room
44 W. Hebble Avenue
Fairborn OH 45324

January 27, 2010, 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Greene County Department of Job & Family Services
541 Ledbetter Road
Xenia, OH 45385

February 10, 2010, 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Sugarcreek Twp Offices
2090 Ferry Road
Bellbrook, OH 45305

The Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission strives to foster collaboration among communities, stakeholders and residents to advance regional transportation priorities. MVRPC is a forum and resource where these regional partners can identify priorities, develop public policy and implement collaborative strategies to improve the quality of life and economic vitality throughout the Miami Valley. MVRPC performs various regional planning activities, including air quality, water quality, transportation, land use, research and GIS. As the designated Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), MVRPC is responsible for transportation planning in Greene, Miami and Montgomery Counties and parts of northern Warren County.

At all MVRPC Open Houses / Public Participation Meetings, interpreters for hearing impaired individuals or bi-lingual interpreters are available upon request. Requests should be made at least one week prior to the meeting date. Contact MVRPC at (937) 223-6323 or 1-800-750-0750 TTY/TDD to request an interpreter.

Visit the website for more information about Going Places initiative or contact staff at 937-223-6323 or goingplaces@mvrpc.org.

Public Suppport of the Arts

So today I feel compelled to defend a tiny piece of my job.

 

Today Montgomery County awarded almost $1 million to local arts organizations. You can read about the award and see the list of recipients in Terry Morris’ Dayton Daily News article. While you might have your own opinion for or against public funding of the arts you can imagine the comments in the DDN!

 

Valid points can be raised about cuts to mandated services (ie. sheriff) while funding the arts. However, the arts are also being cut. The article fails to mention that the arts are not funded out of the county’s general fund (tax revenue) like they used to be. And even if they were, it would still be a worthwhile investment. The arts funding was appropriated in previous budgets prior to the current financial crisis in which the county finds itself. Those appropriations will run out next year.

 

Here’s why I believe the arts should be supported (language adapted from the NEA):

The arts help define what it is to be an American—by building a sense of the nation’s identity, by reinforcing the reality of American pluralism, by advancing democraticvalues at home and by advancing democratic values and peace abroad.

The arts contribute to quality of life and economic growth—by making American

communities more livable and more prosperous and by increasing the nation’s

prosperity at home and abroad.

The arts help form an educated and aware citizenry—by promoting understanding in our diverse society, by developing competence in school and at work and by advancing freedom of inquiry and the open exchange of ideas and values.

The arts enhance individual life—by encouraging individual creativity, spirit and

potential and by providing release, relaxation and entertainment.

Additionally, whether it’s through public support or through private contributions, arts organizations and artists need supported. The average theater or musical production only generates enough revenue to cover 45-55% of a show's costs. Without public and private support of the arts our community’s capacity to offer quality arts would suffer.

Montgomery County is one of several counties in the US that funds the arts. For that we should be thankful. Ohio has traditionally had a strong arts council (which is also suffering the effects of state budget cuts). The NEA has a nice piece about public support of the arts and compares us to other countries. Check it out.

Next time you see a local performance or buy a work from a local artist, imagine our community without their existence and be thankful that Dayton has a top-ranked arts community for a region its size. And if the arts funding does go away, what next? Should there be a levy? A sin tax? A survival of the fittest deathmatch among the artists and organizations?

 

And let's not forget patrons who come in to downtown from other counties using local infrastructure and our amenities and neither they (with some exceptions for true arts patrons and donors) nor their communities contribute a dime to sustaining our arts and cultural heritage.

 

Locals have 4x economic impact over nationals

Anyone that's followed my posts for a while knows I'm an advocate for supporting local businesses. I've had several posts about shopping locally, eating and buying from indepdent businesses, buy local campaigns, and supporting local artists (particularly when looking for holiday gifts).

Here's a link to Cooltown studios about a study about independent businesses and their significance. Big factor...local money, spent locally, stays local to be recirculated.

Time for the Old Boys network to go?

The Dayton Daily News has an opinion of the rally two days ago that is dead-on. While I portrayed the rally for what it tried to accomplish (in my last post), the DDN has written about the reality of how it failed. And I agree 100%.

Has Dayton Turned a Corner?

Dayton has turned a corner, or that’s what yesterday’s rally would have you believe.

In actuality I think the region HAS turned a corner. We’ve taken our hits with the economy, job loss, and the housing market.  Yesterday’s regional rally was designed to make sure we’re not beaten down. Speaker Stacia Edwards (from the Regional Workforce Transformation Consortium) reminded us that we can’t let bad news steal our opportunities or our potential. We have a community in which it is desirable to Live, Work, and Play.

I also think we have turned a corner because citizens and the private sector are stepping up to the plate and taking control. Many projects have been under way for a couple years (or longer). Many people in the audience have been part of those efforts. The rally fell flat as a rally but it did accomplish bringing all those people together even if it was to preach to the choir.

We heard about the size of the region, 13 counties and a 60-mile radius encompassing the 937 area code. We heard about urban revitalization. We heard about connecting assets and people and people to people and people to assets. We heard a litany of all the assets we have in our region. We heard about a desire to be more inclusive and to embrace diversity in our community and in our workforce. We heard about the significance of Wright Patterson Air Force Base’s (and the Springfield Air National Guard) role in the region. We heard from businesses that have started here, are growing here, and WANT TO STAY HERE. We heard about water and we heard about a talented, well-educated, creative workforce. We heard about the Metroparks and a vibrant arts and entertainment scene including theater, youth programs, individual artists, and sports.

Other bloggers and Facebook-ers have expressed feelings about some of the inadequacies of the rally. It was long and not well-paced even though the speaking was broken up to keep our interest. Some speakers effectively captured our attention, particularly Mike Ervin (Downtown Dayton Plan), Sean Creighton and Theresa Gasper (Dayton Create), Mike McDorman (Springfield Chamber of Commerce), Joe Sciabica (WPAFB), and Bruce Langos from Teradata who got his digs in at NCR!

Local leaders (loosely defined) have finally gotten some things right. Other communities, for a long time, have focused on themes around having and building environments that create appealing places to Live, Work, and Play (I blogged about it here in April, 2009). I still don’t Get Midwest. I like Springfield’s Dream Big campaign, inspired by Albert Einstein.

Speaking of leaders, I mentioned above that citizens and the private sector have stepped up to the plate. In addition to business leaders and a small amount of average citizens I was pleased to see elected officials and personnel from many surrounding jurisdictions. However, I’ll need readers to tell me if elected officials from Dayton were present. I suppose it was purposeful that no elected leaders from any of the communities spoke. But everyone wondered if Gary Leitzell, the new mayor, was there. Nobody I spoke with saw Rhine McLin or the commissioners or Phil Parker from the Chamber of Commerce or Jackie Powell from the Convention and Visitors Bureau (and there’s even a Water Innovation Alliance convention coming in May 2010). Feel free to comment or send me an email and I’ll update my post accordingly if corrected. Hopefully no one was snubbed. If we're going to be a region we need to act like one and work together like one. It's time to not only pay lip service to the idea of collaborating. We need to do more as citizens, as businesses, and as local elected officials who need to keep the big picture in mind and consider downsizing and combining governments.

Many of you are in the trenches, moreso than me. You didn’t hear anything new at the rally. You already know and celebrate that Dayton is a community in which to Live, Work and Play. Hopefully the rally showed the rest of the community what we’ve known all along. And hopefully you realize you’re not alone in your interest in our opportunities, potential, and desire to change perceptions.

Here’s a story from the Dayton Daily News. I can’t believe - with all the positive things that were said and promoted - that my post is actually longer than the article. Also be sure to check out Esrati.com.

Downtown on the Rebound

Could this be the beginning of good things to come? Just when I and others were beginning to wonder if there's been any recent activity we got our answer!

Check out the latest Downtown Dayton Partnership newsletter to read about progress downtown related to streets, restaurants, parks, and the Greater Downtown Dayton Plan.

Here's a blurb about the plan:

Don’t miss these upcoming opportunities to learn more about the Greater Downtown Dayton Plan and help provide input into the blueprint for the future of downtown!

Plan Preview

Stop in during Urban Nights and get a sneak peek at draft plan recommendations from the people working on its various projects. See maps, renderings and other visual representations of the future of our urban core.

Friday, September 11, 5-10 p.m. at 8 N. Main St. (street level entrance)

Open Studio Sessions

Each event will feature a presentation and group discussion, followed by hands-on opportunities to provide your own input into the Greater Downtown Dayton Plan. Get involved in shaping the future!

Saturday, October 3

Monday, October 5

Tuesday, October 6

All sessions will be held at 8 N. Main St. (street level entrance.) Session times and info will be posted at downtowndayton.org.

 

In similar news, and probably not known in enough time for the DDP to print in its newsletter, the Wine Gallery and Cafe has officially announced what several foodies in Dayton already knew....that it's moving from the Cannery to the corner of Main/Monument, overlooking the river. Dayton Daily News reports it here.

Choose Dayton

Local leaders today unveiled an effort to reach out to NCR employees faced with the challenge of staying here without a job or moving to Atlanta. I suppose the opportunity to look for work with other Dayton companies is also available to other job seekers but I haven't looked into it that closely. Check it out for yourself at www.choosedayton.com.

Dayton Daily News story here.

Kudos to these leaders/partners for actually working together to accomplish something! It's about time this community started coming together. I take that back, a lot of facets of the community collaborate on all kinds of projects. And I think we're starting to see the synergy of various circles of influence starting to overlap more. That's a good thing.

Retail Strategy for Downtown

From today's DDN:

Request for Proposal

Urban Retail Strategy

 

City of Dayton, Office of Economic Development Issue Date: August 3, 2009 Due Date: 3 PM September 8, 2009

 

The City of Dayton is seeking a consultant or consulting team to create an urban retail strategy for the City based on current and future demographic trends. The greater downtown Dayton area has benefited from the completion of large-scale development projects. The City now desires to quantify and prioritize areas with the highest likelihood of sustaining retail development. The consultant will develop the Urban Retail Strategy by evaluating existing and planned housing developments, business development patterns, and other market-driven data for highest and best use of property. The strategy will contain recommendations for development and investment priorities for the City based on the identified area, improvements needed to realize the strategy and the tangible or intangible return on investment by the City. The strategy will be used to formulate development or redevelopment plans for the identified areas. To obtain the complete RFP, please contact the Office of Economic Development at (937) 333-3634. A non-mandatory meeting about the RFP will be held on August 12, 2009 at City Hall, 101 W. Third St. Please R.S.V.P. your attendance by August 7, 2009 to 333-3634. 11848523 8-3,9/09

So here's a start...

• More diverse/affordable housing options for young professionals, retirees, families
• Parking (everyone begs for it even though it's not necessary if people are living downtown)
• Green spaces, gathering spaces, plazas, creation of a sense of place so people feel connected and safe while they are here
• Foot traffic during the day (since there aren't alot of businesses anymore) and foot traffic at night and on weekends
• Business-friendly government (people and policies)

That will be $120,000, payable to me. No consultant needed! Who else has ideas!?! I bet everyone who reads this will have their own opinions.

Speaking of people already sharing opinions, what's the Downtown Dayton Partnership's role in this, or the Chamber of Commerce, or the Greater Downtown Dayton Plan!?!

If we have money for a consultant what do we need these organizations for? What do we need an Economic Development department for? What do we need Citywide Development for? What do we need a Business Resource Center for?

Facebook readers, if you'd like to comment, please go to the main post at www.lifeindayton.com so that other readers can see your comments! Thanks!