Are American cities dying? Hardly

By PETER BENKENDORF and MIKE ELSASS

“The reports of my death were greatly exaggerated,” was how the American humorist Mark Twain put it. While there is nothing funny about dying cities, it seems the report of the death of 10 American cities, as declared on Aug. 5, 2008, by Forbes.com, was equally premature.

Next month, from Aug. 7 through 9, neighborhood activists, artists, public officials and academics from the so-called “10 Fast Dying Cities” list — Buffalo, N.Y.; Canton, Cleveland, Dayton and Youngstown; Charleston, W.Va.; Detroit and Flint, Mich.; Scranton, Pa., and Springfield, Mass. — will be gathering in Dayton to share, inspire, cross-pollinate and celebrate the most innovative community revitalization projects taking place in their cities. It has been dubbed the “Forbes 10 Fast Dying Cities Symposium and Arts Festival: Celebrating the Human Spirit.” (www.tenlivingcities.org)

There is no doubt that these cities — nine of which are in the Midwest — have fallen on hard times. But if one believes that citizens make the community, and not the other way around, then the dubious distinction of the Forbes list is serving as a powerful call to action for people who care too much about their hometowns to let them die.

In Buffalo an innovative program has been developed to use local labor to demolish and salvage vacant houses.

What a terrific model — one program that offers employment, reduces material going to landfill and raises revenue through the sale of reusable building supplies and architectural artifacts, while starting a process of bring neighborhoods back to health. In Flint, the Genesee County LandBank was recently recognized by the John F. Kennedy School of Government for its work returning foreclosed properties to the tax roll, or when gifted, to a higher and better condition than when received. And in Dayton, the public and private sectors have come together in unprecedented fashion to create the Greater Downtown Plan, a bold vision for business and residential repopulation of downtown over the next decade.

Reuse of buildings

Across the board we are seeing adaptive reuse of buildings, a commitment to green space and neighborhood gardens, investments in our waterfronts and new collaborative ventures dedicated to creating community wealth.

Everything in nature has a lifecycle. Cities are no different. We can wallow in our current situation or we can see this moment in time as an opportunity to invest in ourselves, our neighbors, our futures. Americans do not lack for ingenuity. Look at the Kalamzoo Promise, which pays for college education if you finish high school. The program has created a buzz for Kalamazoo and is being replicated in communities around the country.

So what might the Youngstown Promise or the Scranton Promise look like? The intellectual, organizational, financial, emotional and spiritual resources to transform our cities already exist. We can choose not to confront our challenges because they seem too expensive and complex, or we can resolve to determine a new future for our communities.

However, it is going to take a different kind of approach, involving all four sectors: business, government, community organizations, and the people to produce the as yet unseen levels of engagement, imagination, possibilities, partnership and progressive pragmatism that will define the 21st Century communities we want to live in and have thrive.

And that is what the “Forbes 10 Fast Dying Cities Symposium and Arts Festival” is all about. Not a wake, but a rebirth. So, if you live in one of these 10 cities, or are interested in your own community’s future, we encourage you to join us. The Symposium will feature:

UTopics such as community wealth creation, collaboration, green planning and regionalism;

UBreakout sessions on the role of media, libraries, universities, government and the private sector in revitalization;

UPresentations of the most innovative projects in each city;

UPanel discussions and brainstorming sessions to share ideas about what is working well and not so well;

UNew relationships and new possibilities.

Every idea is the spark for another idea. Every inspiration is the source of new inspiration. And the Arts Festival, including the creation of a collaborative piece by artists from all 10 cities, will demonstrate convincingly that we are truly alive.

X Peter Benkendorf, executive director of Involvement Advocacy and Mike Elsass, owner of the Color of Energy gallery, both of Dayton, are the originators of the “Forbes 10 Fast Dying Cities Symposium and Arts Festival: Celebrating the Human Spirit.” For more information, please visit www.tenlivingcities.org.