Are you down to help rebuild your city? It's time to do it - Richard Florida interview

Richard Florida talks about The New Urban Crisis, that's the title of his latest book, which I have read.  Florida came to prominence in the the economic development/urban planning world with his 2002 book, The Rise of the Creative Class.  He realized the tech world was changing the game in how businesses grew and located while a professor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh in the 1990's.  When he did the research, he learned why tech companies clustered in a small number of cities, cities which already had clusters of artists, musicians, and other highly creative people. 

I've read 4 of his 5 books on these topics, listened to his talks dozens of times, and I have one advantage that Richard Florida DOES NOT HAVE.  I've actually lived in a city where I got to watch (and participate in) the entire Creative Class arc actually happen.  I saw Huntington Beach, California go through the arc from sketchy, run-down, beach city, to worldwide renowned, happening creative spot from 1987 to 2007.

But it wasn't high tech that did it in H.B.  It was the rise of the action sports world, of which the Huntington Beach area was a big hub.  I never heard of Richard Florida then, because our region didn't need to rebuild after the collapse of the factory economy.  It wasn't a manufacturing city to start with.  There was, and is, tech in H.B., and a lot nearby, but that's not what the area is known for.  In addition, it's in Orange County, California (where Disneyland is), which always falls in the shadow of Los Angeles, just to the north.   So the Huntington Beach area revival by the Creative Class flew under the radar of Richard Florida himself.

I first heard of Florida in a Yes Weekly! article here in Winston-Salem in 2009.  As soon as I read the article, I read The Rise of the Creative Class.  Since I'd already seen this transition happen in real life, I thought, "Yeah, of course, you get a bunch of creative people together, ambitious ones, and cool shit will happen.  After a while, the city becomes known as a cool place to be."  I saw his concept as the well-researched explanation of what I saw happen in H.B. and other action sports heavy cities (which include Austin, Texas, by the way).

Now, 16 years after his first book, nearly every city has huge issues to work out.  Rural America is flat out dying.  Small towns are struggling and opiate addiction is a bigger issue than all the things people used to talk about.  I've known Richard Florida's work explained a big part of the puzzle in what's happening in society, and why so many people are simply struggling to survive.  This took me down a path of thought which led to realizing how important Creative Scenes of all kinds are to a town, city, or region.  That's where my work is headed.  I have a lot of insights, and practical experience, in that area.

While a lot of Florida's talks get into this info, this particular interview comes across in a way that's much more palatable for local artists, poets, musicians, community organizers, and activists to listen to. 

If you think your city kinda sucks, or even TOTALLY SUCKS, and you want to make it better, listen to this.