Brewed Fresh Daily

After reading this excerpt, make sure you click thru to read all of Lev’s commentary as well as check out the ‘World Map of Shrinking Cities’ video he’s posted:

Population size remains relevant in the connected community but does fall victim to the demographers imperative that size equals destiny. The art of designing a connected-city, especially as part of a re-invention project, may well be one of the biggest opportunities of the 21st century. Connected-cities enables learning, participation, and opportunities to re-discover the value of human ingenuity. Connected cities and their citizens and neighborhoods can export virtues like art, education, culture, and sport over the 21st century transportation system known as the Internet. Creativity, diversity, smart and green are important inputs into the connected city allowing us to better balance economic opportunities with creating livable neighborhoods, accentuating quality of life, and a more sustainable approach to the broader eco-systems within which our cities evolve…

Bytes From Lev: Reports of Cities’ Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated

Living in Cleveland is as cool as this.

Cleveland City Living: New Video Highlights Downtown Cleveland

MaryBeth Matthews writes:

[T]he average supply budget for art teachers in the Cleveland Municipal School District is $300 for the school year. Most high school teachers have five or six art classes totaling 150-170 students. Let’s do the math kids…That comes to approximately $1.76-$2.00 per student to spend on art supplies for a school year that lasts 36 weeks. And how much do you think $2.00 buys in today’s economy? At the dollar store I can buy a pack of 20 pencils and two pink erasers.

Unlike suburban schools, we cannot charge parents a materials fee, in fact, we are not even supposed to ask students to bring in their own supplies…

The district claims to support the arts, but it seems to me those claims are mostly lip service. I wish that they would finally put some money where their mouth is.
How about this idea? Hire one less consultant and double the money for art supplies. Eliminate an administrator, and triple the art supply budget. Then maybe our students could have an arts experience comparable to the kids in the suburbs.

Fannie Lewis didn’t have a degree from Harvard University but her common sense wisdom could often exceed the judgments of the Ivy League learned.

I can’t count the hours I spent with Fannie at committee and Council meetings over 20 or more years. I do know she took up a lot more of my time than I wanted. She could go on and on and on.

Yet there were times during those long disputations when Fannie – that’s what most people called her – would zero in smack on the problem everyone else was dancing around. Read the rest of this entry »

ArtsCollinwood is seeking sponsors for this year’s Waterloo Arts Fest. In it’s sixth year, the fest is a vibrant and lively day of music, art and demonstrations that grows bigger and more exciting each year. With over 3,500 visitors expected to wander through downtown Waterloo, there will be something to catch every eye, from family friendly hands-on activities to dazzling street performers to live music. With some of the city’s best music close at hand, and great food to sample from local restaurants, the event caters to diverse tastes, and lets residents and visitors explore an eclectic array of buyable and unusual art.

Help support the arts scene in Cleveland. Details available in this Waterloo Arts Fest Sponsor PDF. There’s still time to be included in our Cleve Scene and Free Times ads!

From Bill:

Finally, Commission member Bill Callahan (that’s me) distributed a request for consideration of two proposals as part of any plan to reduce Council ward representatives. The first (“Collaborative Government”) is specific language for my 1988 proposal for Neighborhood Service Districts. The second (“Transparent Government”) would require the Mayor to make all public records of departments and bodies within his jurisdiction available to the public on line by a Charter-specified deadline.

It’d be a good idea to see what the GCP is proposing in this post too.

GCP: End referendum requirement for City sale of filled lakefront land « Cleveland Charter Review 2008

From the Lincoln Land Institute via Otis White:

One of the longest standing debates in community economic development is between “place-based” and “peoplebased” approaches to combating poverty, housing affordability, chronic unemployment, and community decline. Should help go to distressed places or distressed people?

People or Place?