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6 Responses to “You’d think if NOLA could do i…”

1. Derek Arnold Says:
   August 14th, 2009 at 9:18 am

   I do agree, George but let’s look at the three factors in the article that seem to be the reasons why this renaissance, to borrow a word with French roots, is happening in NOLA:

   1. “There’s a sense of opportunity and possibility, combined with people who have the horsepower to actualize those possibilities,” Michael Hecht, 38, president of Greater New Orleans Inc., a nonprofit economic development agency. What excites a creative more than an opportunity to actually create something? That’s definitely post-Katrina New Orleans.
   2. Low rents. That, along with business tax incentives and…
   3. New Orleans legendary music and culture… and voila!

   Cleveland has a culture but it’s not quite NOLA’s. It does have an appeal so that one is somewhat of a wash but what about the first two?

   The opportunity to create in NOLA is the result of probably the worst natural disaster in American history so, in many ways NO was a clean slate. Cleveland, by contrast, has so much existing structure that gets in the way of forging of new paths. Corrupt politicians, risk-averse gatekeepers and a citizenry that has been written off for years has makes it harder than it would be in NOLA.

   Also, if we could get something going, where would it be? Would it have the power to draw people out of their silos?

2. George Nemeth Says:
   August 14th, 2009 at 6:11 pm

   Where? Does it matter? It can be everywhere. Your neighborhood and mine. And others.

   Blank slate? Are you kidding me? Have you driven thru East Cleveland lately? Mayor Eric is going to have an issue if you’re suggesting he’s corrupt.

   Frankly, I could care less about people who want to stay in their silos. I’ve been in there. There aren’t doing anything. It’s the people already out here that are doing the cool stuff.

3. Ed Morrison Says:
   August 16th, 2009 at 3:58 pm

   Derek:

   Communities regenerate only after they have died enough. The turning point comes when a critical mass of people figure out that old strategies don’t work, and they must try something new. After all, they conclude,they cannot fall off the floor.

   One of Cleveland’s problems is that it has not died enough.

   Cleveland’s “leadership” still thinks of itself in control and the center of the NEO regional universe. (Look at the Cleveland+ nonsense or the concentrated funding pattern of the Fund for our Economic Future.)

   As a consequence, many of the assets that the business community or foundations could bring to regional transformation are instead applied in largely isolated initiatives. Their big mistake in thinking: in order to gain regional scale, you need to focus on building a handful of big Cleveland-based economic development organizations. Huge amounts of foundation funding are going to finance costly overheads.

   These initiatives are having remarkably little impact beyond the three or four county footprint. They will, in the end, transform relatively little in the broader region. (If you have doubts, ask the leadership in Youngstown, Akron or Lorain about Cleveland+ or the Fund’s investment priorities.)

   Sadly, Cleveland is in such a deep hole right now that dramatic new thinking will be required to set the city on a new development trajectory.

   Last week’s sustainability summit could help, but its long-term impact will depend on the success of translating ideas into action. Here, the record in Cleveland and the current leadership is not so good.

   The core behaviors that characterize Cleveland’s civic life have been slow to change toward a more open and networked-based approach to economic development. These new network-based models — including cluster development, open innovation, strategic doing, and open source economic development — generate collaboration and “link and leverage” strategies across organizational and political boundaries. These models are lean, flexible and scalable.

   As Cleveland’s civic behaviors change toward more open engagement, Cleveland’s transformation will take root and accelerate. But at this rate, frankly, it will take a decade or more. In the meantime, much will be lost. The canaries in the cage will be the non-profit organizations which will struggle and die. In the meantime, Cleveland will continue to lose ground to similarly situated cities like Pittsburgh and Milwaukee.

   The corruption festering below the surface of Cuyahoga County slows the city’s transformation and represents a costly distraction to the city’s transformation.

   There is a chance that a new form of county government will trigger a deeper re-examination of how the next generation of economic development leadership in Cleveland could move toward more open, productive and effective investments in innovation.

   But then again, it may not.

4. John Polk Says:
   August 16th, 2009 at 5:56 pm

   Ed, I’ve been thinking a little bit about the last point you raise (I agree with everything you say, by the way)…whether a new form of County government might contribute to some sort of sustained regional transformation…

   It occurred to me that probably one of the region’s largest, most activist, and most loyal voting blocs consists of municipal and county workers. These voters can easily be spooked by the current economic pressure on local and county governments and the prospect that change will inevitably come at their expense.

   Its difficult for me to see this large group be willing to support anything which might be positioned as against their self-interest. And given the preponderance of local government officials who have already jumped aboard the “study” initiative, I imagine that the pressure on local government workers to support Jones and Hagan, and their own bosses in tossing out the reform plan will be immense. And their numbers could easily be decisive, especially given that the City Of Cleveland will be voting for Mayor, as well.

   And that, I think, is precisely what The Men Behind The Curtain have in mind…

5. Ed Morrison Says:
   August 17th, 2009 at 6:27 am

   Here’s an interesting commentary out of California on the role of unions in padding the overheads of the public sector. Based on your comments, some of the same dynamic is at work in Cleveland and Cuyahoga County.

6. George Nemeth Says:
   August 17th, 2009 at 3:09 pm

   Maybe I should do my own FAM tour. I wonder if any of my friends at any of NEO ED orgs are up to rolling down the HealthLine thru eCleveland with me? I’ll be on my Harley. We’ll start at Public Sqaure and head east. I’ll see if we can visit Mayor Eric.