The ‘Creative Class’ and Comeback Cities: Beyond the Hype

[xchrom]

http://www.inthesetimes.com/working/entry/13033/the_creative_class_and_comeback_cities_beyond_the_hype/

BOULDER, CO—What does it mean for a down-on-its-luck city to "come back"? "Comeback city" is a catch phrase today, with some of the brightest minds in urban planning studying, experimenting upon and opining about what it takes for a de-industrialized metropolis like Detroit, Cleveland or Albany to transform itself into a vibrant, attractive destination known for its culture and livability rather than one key industry.

I pondered the question of what it really means for a city to "come back" during and after a panel on Rust Belt cities at the Conference on World Affairs in Boulder this week. The conference is an eclectic event in its 64th year that throws together public intellectuals discussing a wide variety of topics with the intent seemingly of raising more questions than answers.

I became increasingly frustrated by some of the early discussion in the Rust Belt panel, which echoed the prevailing rhetoric on this topic—the idea that reviving decaying cities depends upon "rebranding" them and attracting the "creative class" of graphic designers, computer programmers, artists, musicians, writers and hip café and restaurant owners who create a desirable and trendy place to live. It was all about convincing an educated, innovative, hip demographic to move to these cities, and creating universities, information technology hubs, urban farms, arts districts and the like to employ and entertain them. It sounded almost like a competition between cities to lure the coolest and most interesting, in hopes of becoming the next Silicon Valley.

That’s all well and good, I thought, but what about all the people who already live in these cities?

Though many of these cities have hemorrhaged population in the past few decades, they are still home to hundreds of thousands of people. Surely there are plenty of creative, artistic and interesting people among the current residents, who either don’t have the luxury of exploring and developing their talents because of their daily struggle to survive, or who are producing creative and intellectual work that is not recognized or supported by the governmental, cultural and social powers that be.

[Populist_Prole]

1. I've been reading of that hype for a while, and the elitism really irks me

I think, as you say, it's all well and good too, but why do the promoters of this hype see it as an all or nothing deal? Why do the "creative class" ( to me that really means the idle rich ) have to replace the working class rather than augment them. The erstwhile denizens of the working class are still there trying to hang on. Do these clean fingernailed chamber of commerce booster types want to just load them up in box cars ( Oh that's right, trains are so last century, make it trucks ) and haul them off so the yuppies don't have to see them in their daily interactions in their new white collar utopia?

[Odin2005]

2. I hate the "creative class" BS popularized by Richard Florida.

IMO it's Globalist "New Knowledge Economy" propaganda written for a Latte Liberal Yuppie audience and is a slap in the face of blue collar workers.

[Populist_Prole]

3. Well said!

It's just the latest iteration of 3rd-way types to throw the traditional Democratic party base under the bus, albeit with a smiley face.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

4. I'd be happy to be a fulltime painter if people would buy my work.

I read that book too. I would consider myself part of the creative class as in "actually creative", not a yuppie who is really not creative (lawyer, bean counter).

[Manifestor_of_Light]

6. kick

kick

Look for links to my stuff in the "Visionary Art" thread in ASAH.

Thank you.

[varelse]

5. isn't this just gentrification under a different name? (nt)