http://www.salon.com/2014/08/20/milwaukee_is_the_new_portland_partner/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=socialflow
hahaha that is not my work.. I haven't been to the land of Laverne and Shirley in more than a decade, but I'm glad they're turning it around. That read like a lot of wind to say that they found something that works for them. I have a full appreciation for Portland's weird ass way, but that's not to say what works for them will work for say.. Detroit. I think you have to build and maintain the city the people want to live in, and that's something that seems to have gotten away from politicians and civil engineers a while ago. It's changing, but there's a lot of work to be done.
I can picture the author as one of those 30 to 40 year old perpetual adolescent types. You know what I mean...the kind of guy who wears the designer eyeglasses, lives in the progressive section of downtown, probably a Vegan, is a member of Daily Kos. A couple of green buildings and a few marsupial bridges does not turn a Midwestern city into Oz. Milwaukee is a sort of like a miniature Chicago. There are several sections of the city that are great but there are other sections that have more in common with Liberia than Portland. The issue of its continuing viability will be whether they can create an environment that causes middle and upper class class folk to decide to live in the city rather than flee to the burbs. That means keeping property taxes reasonable and keeping those sections of the city that are safe to remain a safe place to live. If they are able to do that, Milwaukee will remain a viable city. If not, the city will eventually morph into the Badger state's version of Detroit.
If I were given a choice to live in a city that produced Dahlmer versus a state that gifted this poor country Nancy Pelosi, Barbara Boxer, and Jerry Brown, I'll take my chances and choose living amongst the cannibals.