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KEVAN WILLIAMS
WHAT’S UP IN NEW DEVELOPMENT
Our brand: "Bulldawg Country!" declares the
airport security agent as I begin the screen
ing process at PDX. I'd rather the chummy fed
had shared his affinity for our homegrown
'80s New Wave bands, but, oh well. I was even
wearing a WUOG 90.5 FM sweatshirt, instead
of one with a Georgia G. The Dawgs are how
we're known by a lot of people, though, and
it's worth considering: what is the Athens
brand? I ask the Englishwoman on the plane
next to me; she has heard of R.E.M. but can't
place Georgia on a map, let alone Athens.
If someone has never visited or encoun
tered a Southerner for any length of time, it
is sweet tea, racism, the lilting Savannah
drawl and other stereotypes that he or she
relies on. The film Deliverance, one person
informed me, was reason enough not to visit
Georgia.
cities" to master-plan their downtowns, I've
come across quite a few interesting strategies.
Macon aims to emulate Athens' "college town
cool" by revitalizing areas near Mercer to
breathe life into their urban core. Chattanooga
has adopted a public art plan, aiming to
cement its arts identity. Charleston and New
Orleans, both threatened by rising sea levels
and coastal storms, have adopted green prin
ciples quite overtly as part of their city plan
ning strategies.
A Regional Approach: Rather than seeing the
rise of each of these downtowns as a competi
tion and trying to poach museums and halls
of fame from various cities, as the legislature
would have us do by bidding for the Georgia
sports and music halls of fame, both currently
located in Macon, we should consider that
The Riverfront District in Columbus: success there can
be good for the region as a whole, including Athens.
While our beaches have always been a
big hit with south-bound Yankees, an eco
nomic reputation is only just forming. Lately
the South has roped in a lot of car plants,
thanks to its lack of unionization. Charlotte
and Atlanta have started to become major
financial hubs. However, this isn't a strong or
cohesive brand, as compared to places like the
Northwest or Northeast. The urban tradition
is strong in the Northeast, and cities like New
York, Philadelphia and Boston have strong
reputations as the places where successful
and cosmopolitan people flock, either as
business tycoons or Ivy League students. The
Pacific Northwest's cities are known as clean
and green, with active outdoor lifestyles and
innovative solutions which attract so many
young graduates that there aren't near enough
jobs to go around.
Our Identity: What could pull people and capi
tal into our region at the same level as those
examples? There are plenty of people for whom
small town life may be quite appealing, and '
this may point a way forward for the region.
It also aligns well with the cultural reputa
tion of the South. While Atlanta, Chartotte
and Nashville jockey for the role of "Capital
of the South," there are a dozen other cities,
in the million people or less range, each with
a strong urban identity, which could form the
basis for a regional approach to place-making
as economic strategy.
If high-quality companies want to locate in
areas that are cheaper (a driving force behind
so much Sun Belt growth) but don't want to
give up cosmopolitan amenities, we may be
positioned to offer the best of both worlds. In
researching the efforts of other 'competitor
the success of one city's revitalization really
does benefit the region. Macon may end up
getting commuter rail from Atlanta sooner
than Athens, and Athens may still benefit
tangentially. As individual cities become more
progressive, this will only improve the regional
reputation. Out-of-town investors may yet
come to see the region as one brimming with
possibility and eager to reinvent and reinvest
in itself.
The urban cores of regional cities also col
lectively might have the ability to sway a leg
islature much more interested in funding rural
highways than intercity rail transportation.
While proposals like an Interstate 3 through -
the Appalachian mountains may lure some
freezer plants and distribution Warehouses, a
networked collection of urban and academic
centers might attract higher quality industry.
The reality is that 8 million out of nearly 10
million Georgians live within a metropolitan
statistical area, and while much of that is
suburban, it does mean that these core dries
are a significant influence in the lives of 80
percent of Georgians. Why would we invest
anywhere else?
We may not be as green as Vancouver,
or as educated as Boston, but we do have
something to offer, and all it will take is a
willingness to craft that experience. Southern
dries should be the types of places where you
ride along shady riverbanks, through historic
neighborhoods and into beautiful downtowns
that mix historic architecture with modem
cultural amenities like museums. Who wouldn't
want to live in a pLce like that? The opportu
nity to create it is right here in front of us.
Kuvan Williams athensrising@fiagpole.com
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