Brewed Fresh Daily

Steve Czarnecki is the CEO for the Enterprise Group of Jackson, Michigan. Enterprise Group is the umbrella organization for economic development there. They're trying to "figure out how to lure artists to Jackson". Once they do that "it will be easier to lure desirable high-tech business and their employees to the community".

Steve says, "I think we have to increase our Bohemian Index a little bit here to attract those kind of people." Artists have a track record for moving into old warehouse and industrial areas where rents are low, fixing it up, and making a community hip and attractive. The rub is they often then get priced out of the market. For artists like Kay Howard and Phil Chiban, affordable housing is one attraction of the project. They support themselves on his pension payments and her pottery sales. But there's another reason they're interested. The couple is drawn to the idea of living with other working artists. "You get kind of solitary as an artist and you really need that contact and comradery and so forth, so the idea of living in a community-type setting with other artists is very exciting." She's also excited about the prospect of being part of a project that recycles an abandoned building and one that could bring excitement to a downtown in need of new life.

What do you suppose Cleveland's "Bohemian Index" is?