The impact from Richard Florida’s “The Rise of the Creative Class” continues years after its publication. In its wake, new consulting firms have arrived on the scene to shepherd communities into the promised land of retaining their own GenX creative generation – and actually plugging the “brain drain.” And, in some states – particularly in Michigan – the arrival of “Cool Cities” programs have attempted to match such efforts with hefty doses of public investment.

It is possible that the leading such consultant is “Next Generation Consulting,” a Wisconsin firm that has recently been involved in bringing the message of creative class retention to groups in Cleveland, Canton, Akron and now Columbus. Their price tag is certainly not cheap (up to $75,000 or more). To get a good idea of the results of their work, here are the final reports submitted to the communities of Canton and Rockford, Illinois. Current “cool” efforts in Canton, one year after a visit from Next Generation, are profiled in this Repository article.

While conclusions reached in these reports have been criticized by some as being boilerplate and self-evident, such as here, it is interesting to note that they nevertheless strongly confirm a concept that preservationists have been saying for years -- that a community’s historic resources are essential in retaining and attracting young professionals. From downtown revitalization to strengthening close-in older neighborhoods, these reports emphasize keeping and enhancing a community’s past.

Historic resources are, after all, the primary asset that makes Ashtabula different than East Liverpool, and Dayton different than Toledo. As the saying goes, “It is what makes a community unique that makes in marketable.” Or, in this context, “cool.” The message of the cool cities movement is that for Ohio to experience net in-migration, it needs to combine a commitment to preserving its past with its long-standing emphasis on lowering business taxes and creating giant financial incentives for corporate relocation and reinvestment. As Richard Florida points out in his book, in the modern economy corporations will go where the creative people are, not vice versa.

Ignoring the impact of their decision on the future of Downtown Tiffin, as well as a recent Toledo Blade survey which revealed that three-quarters of the population of Seneca County want to vote on the issue, the two Seneca County Commissioners nevertheless voted Monday to proceed with demolishing the landmark Seneca County Courthouse.

We have featured the Courthouse situation in Tiffin often in articles on MyHometownOhio. In the end, the decision of the two Commissioners was as clear a case of “not seeing the forest for the trees” as you can possibly get; their sole preoccupation with providing low-cost functional county space not only ignored the other purposes that courthouses serve, but it set the stage for the loss of additional buildings and for dramatically reduced economic development downtown. And where were civic leaders during this ongoing saga? Either expressing an extremely outdated view and misunderstanding of downtown revitalization, or as silent as church mice.

Although a small hope remains in the form of a pending lawsuit, the Commissioners have acted and the “deed is done.” Future generations of Seneca Countians will call their decision what it really was – a short-sighted and disastrous mistake.

Photo: Seneca County Courthouse - Preservation Ohio File Photo

Your opinion counts to Preservation Ohio, and here’s your chance to make it known.

This summer, Ohio’s statewide preservation organization is looking at the current state of preservation and revitalization in Ohio.  We are identifying the most important issues that currently face the state’s historic resources, and where the best opportunities are in 2007 to make a difference. From the role of local preservation and downtown revitalization organizations, to the loss of historic schools and courthouses, to the unique make-up of Ohio's statewide preservation community -- we would love to know the views of our members, friends and blog readers.

We realize that a good number of regular readers of MyHometownOhio come from a wide variety of locations across the country and the world, and we are thrilled about that.  We would ask, however, that only those who live in the state of Ohio participate in this survey, unless you are involved in a national organization that does work in the Buckeye state.  No matter who you are, if you live or work in Ohio, you are welcome to fill out a survey form.

Its easy to participate, and you may do so completely anonymously. By clicking here, you will access our Summer 2007 “Preservation in Ohio” survey, which includes only 20 or so questions and can be completed in only a few short minutes. Some of our survey results will be shared in a future story in MyHometownOhio.

Please take the time to complete this survey and help us help communities across the state - your opinion does count. Many thanks!

When you spend almost a million dollars for a preservation plan, you expect the results to be “big.” Some people in Cincinnati were surprised, however, when the proposed future for the Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal called for nothing less than the creation of new neighborhood for Ohio’s Queen City.

The Museum Center is housed in the former Union Terminal, a mammoth Art Deco structure with sweeping lines. According to Wikipedia, the Terminal was not only the largest half-dome anywhere in the world at the time of its construction, but was the only such structure in the entire Western Hemisphere. It remained in use until 1972, giving it only 39 years of service as a terminal. After a failed attempt at turning the property into a themed shopping venue, the very successful Museum Center opened in 1990 after local voters approved an issue to fund the project.

The Cincinnati Post has reported that the preliminary results of an $800,000 study suggest an investment of some $111 million in preservation work and another $50 million in parking construction. A further proposal to build a series of housing and retail units was not given a precise estimate, at least in the study’s preliminary version.

This is surely not the only large-scale restoration project ever proposed in Ohio. The Ohio Statehouse restoration, completed in 1996, cost the state some $121 million. The Cincinnati proposal may well be, however, the largest ever contemplated.

Photo: Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal - wallyg/Creative Commons License

Ohio has a long and proud music tradition, and Preservation Ohio’s MySpace site now celebrates that tradition by featuring a different independent local Ohio music group each month.  In August, visitors to the site can experience “The Princes of Hollywood,” a folk-inspired duo from Athens County.

The site now includes links to over 80 friends of preservation and revitalization from across the state and the country, including the Ohio Historical Society and Ohio History Day sites, the Historic Franklin Castle and Parish Hall artspace in Cleveland, Stuart’s Opera House in Nelsonville, and the “Fabulous Hilltop & Franklinton” neighborhoods in Columbus.  The Patrons of Youngstown Arts is working to preserve the façade of the historic State Theatre downtown, and the Ohio Exploration Society and Abandoned Ohio present photo essays on forgotten pieces of historic Ohio.  More links are added weekly.

To visit the Preservation Ohio MySpace site, click here.