We’re familiar with the concept of a town having “character” when it comes to its architecture, its history, or its location. But what if we define character less in terms of infrastructure and more in terms of personality? For example, a town could be extraverted or introverted, inclusive or exclusive, miserly or generous, victimized or valiant, in the same way an individual could be described as such. Could communities, like people, exhibit the symptoms of personality disorders, too? Neuroses, paranoia, grandiosity, etc.?
Towns earn reputations, deserved or undeserved. New York City has a reputation, so do Las Vegas and New Orleans and Seattle. Within those cities are smaller communities, all the way down to neighborhoods, that have their own reputations, for better or worse.
If there’s truth to the notion that a town can have a kind of overarching, defining personality, where does that come from? In humans we’d argue “nature vs. nurture.” In business we might say “as goes the leader, so goes the organization.” I’m not sure what creates a town’s personality. Leadership, both elected and inherited, certainly plays a role in expressing, and maybe developing, a town’s personality. Small towns come with a preprogrammed set of characteristics, as do large cities: it’s why we always lock our cars in Denver and rarely lock our cars at home.
The recent book “Our Towns, A 100,000 Mile Journey Into the Heart of America,” by James Fallows and Deborah Fallows, outlines “10-1/2 signs of civic success.” I think it makes for an interesting checklist.
- People work together on practical local possibilities, rather than allowing bitter disagreements about national politics to keep them apart.
- You can pick out the local patriots (a small group of local leaders really matter).
- The phrase “public-private partnership” refers to something real.
- People know the civic story.
- They have downtowns.
- They are near a research university.
- They have and care about, a community college.
- They have distinctive, innovative schools.
- They make themselves open (welcoming newcomers).
- They have big plans.
Finally, No. 10-½? The Fallows write, “Of course, there’s one other marker of a city that is working, perhaps the most reliable gauge. A city on the way back will have at least one craft brewery, maybe more, and probably some small distilleries, too.”
How many of those signs of civic success can we claim, and how can we work together to achieve more?
By NIKI TURNER – editor@editorht1885.com