VICKSBURG ELECTION 2017; BLUEPRINT FOR GROWTH & PROSPERTY

VICKSBURG LOOK
TO THE FUTURE

  There are over 25,000 incorporated communities in America. How many of these are truly successful? How is it that some small towns and rust belt cities are prospering, while many others are suffering disinvestment, loss of identity, and even abandonment? Why are some communities able to maintain their historic character and quality of life in the face of a rapidly changing world, while others have lost the very features that once gave them distinction and appeal? How can communities, both big and small, grow without losing their heart and soul?

   From coast to coast, communities are struggling to answer these questions. After observing hundreds of communities in all regions of the country, I have come to some conclusions about why some communities succeed and others fail. There are many communities that have found ways to retain their small town values, historic character, scenic beauty and sense of community, yet sustain a prosperous economy. And they’ve done it without accepting the kind of cookie-cutter development that has turned many communities into faceless places that young people flee, tourists avoid and which no longer instill a sense of pride in residents.

 

    Every “successful” community has its own strengths and weaknesses, but they all share some common characteristics. It’s clear for instance that successful communities involve a broad cross-section of residents in determining and planning the future. They also capitalize on their distinctive assets — their architecture, history, natural surroundings, and home grown businesses — rather than trying to adopt a new and different identity Most successful communities also utilize a variety of private-sector and market incentives to influence to influence their development, instead of relying solely on government regulations.

  

    Successful communities always have a plan for the future. Unfortunately,

“planning” is a dirty word in some communities, especially in small towns and rural

areas. In some places, this is the result of today’s highly polarized political culture.

In other places, it results from a misunderstanding of planning and its value.

"The truth is, failing to plan, simply means planning to fail. It is difficult to name any successful individual, organization, corporation or community that doesn’t plan for the future."

Try to imagine a company that didn’t have a business plan. It would have a very hard time attracting investors or staying competitive in the marketplace. The same is true of communities. A community plan is simply a blueprint for the future. People may differ on how to achieve the community’s vision, but without a blueprint, a community will flounder.

   The proof is everywhere, communities that set low standards or no standards will compete to the bottom. On the other hand, communities that set high standards will compete to the top. This is because they know that if they say no to bad development they will always get better development in its place. 

   Too many elected officials have an “it’ll do” attitude toward new development. Worse yet, they’ll accept anything that comes down the pike, even if the proposed project is completely at odds with the community’s well thought out vision for the future. They are simply afraid to place any demands on a developer for fear that the developer will walk away if the community asks for too much. This is especially true when dealing with out of town developers or with national chain stores and franchises.

Successful communities have strong leaders and committed citizens. A small number of committed people can make a big difference in a community. Sometime these people are longtime residents upset with how unmanaged growth has changed what they love about their hometown. Others times, the leaders might be newcomers who want to make sure that their adopted hometown doesn’t develop the same ugliness or congestion as the one they left. More often than not, they’re simply citizens who care a great deal about their community.

   We live in a rapidly changing world. In his new book,The Great Reset, author Richard Florida says that “the post-recession economy is reshaping the way we live, work, shop and move around.” He goes on to predict that “communities that embrace the future will prosper. Those that do not will decline.” One big change is that people and businesses can now choose where to live or operate a business. In today’s world, communities that cannot differentiate themselves will have no competitive advantage.

This means that quality of life is more important than ever. Successful communities know that sameness is not a plus. It is minus. Successful

communities set themselves apart. They know that communities that choose their future are always more successful than those that leave their future to chance.