BY BOB SHAW
Judy Tschumper is chasing a dream.
'It's all right here!' she shouted, over the happy racket of a small-town street party in Lakeville on a hot August night.
Around her was a nostalgic vision of Elvis music, flowerpots, dancing children and food stands -- a throwback to what Lakeville and America used to be. As an old man did the twist beside her, she reveled in the restoration of the everyone-knows-you small-town way of life.
Indeed, that is what most of Minnesota yearns for -- even when it doesn't make sense.
The small towns of yesteryear are gone, yet they grip the imaginations of Minnesotans. From Hudson to St. Paul to Edina, cities fret about losing their small-town charm. Arguments rage and millions of dollars are spent in efforts to preserve or build it.
The rise of the automobile unraveled small towns. When customers could drive to bigger stores, they traded their small-town loyalty for convenience and lower prices.
Meanwhile, air-conditioning and TV kept people indoors. Yards and houses became immense. Neighbors became strangers.
Today, small towns -- like small family farms -- have lost their economic reason for being. Yet Archer said they persist, often with government subsidies.
Is the time right for Centerville to head in the same direction?
5 comments:
How much money is it going to cost the citizens to feed these egos?
Is someone wishing to create a legacy or just wanting a day named after himself?
Inquiring minds want to know...
Let them ALL have a day named after themselves if it will make them stop spending our money!
The point is, it has been tried and failed in much larger cities than ours.
Centerville is hardly a destination City (despite the wishes of current council) and never will be.
The good news is that the Beard group will most likely not get the financing needed in this market so all this speculation is for not. Particularly when they still have vacant buildings about Minnesota.
There is one exception. Low income housing. Financing for that is about the only game in town. There is plenty of subsidies and grants still available. Just wait and see.
That will be the legacy of our current council.
Low income house. We don't have transportation to doctors, shopping, etc. etc. These are people who have little to spend. These can be the people bringing in abuse, drugs, etc. Is that what we want for Centerville?
So you think just because someone is "low income" that they are drug using wife beaters? Boy what a bigot.
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