“10 ideas that could change our city,” The Colorado Springs Business Journal, June 29 – July 5, 2012, 25.

CITY MANIFESTO

Cities are built by visionaries or economic necessities (trade routes, ports). Ours has a history of great men, from General Palmer to Stratton and Penrose, who have thought of making our town a better place to live for future generations. We don’t need a gold rush to have a vision, only some dedication and goodwill.

While the Mayor is busy cleaning up city administration after decades of benign neglect bordering on fiduciary delinquency, and City Council is figuring out its job description after changes in the city charter, let me dare dream.

First, as part of the city structural cleanup, we should divest ourselves from any and all entities that are not essential to our operation. Sell or lease Memorial Hospital, Utilities, and the Airport. There is a twofold urgency for this: ridding ourselves of entities we cannot manage efficiently or oversee responsibly, and providing funds to pay for all the ideas listed below. Lease revenues (or outright sale) should be set aside in a special account for long-term projects and initiatives without the need of additional taxes or fees.

Second, we should build on the presence of the USOC and focus on athletic activities. We cannot expect professional teams to move here, so instead we should become the center of handicap/special tournaments (including veterans). A downtown complex (perhaps in place of the Drake power plant) would revitalize the city and draw tourists from across America. Every major city (see Denver) has realized this fact.

Third, if indeed University of Colorado Health System takes over Memorial and opens a branch at UCCS, we should ask for it to become dedicated to sports medicine—training, nutrition, treatment. The synergy between USOC, UCCS, and MHS could become a national model. This is not about money but about an execution of ideas in the most efficient way, using the talent we have and responding to community needs.

Fourth, given the many veterans that we have in town, we should integrate them into the previous two ideas, whatever the conditions under which they are discharged. The military has some resources that could be part of what the city plans to do. Whether as participants or fans, veterans should be made to feel as part of the city. They cannot be heroes abroad and pariahs at home.

Fifth, get the business community more involved in education (K-12). Our very own Steve Schuck spearheaded the school voucher initiative that brought about charter schools around the state. The Chamber of Commerce should follow this lead and ensure that graduation rates from our school districts are no longer an embarrassment. School reform should be local (rather than the disastrous federal mandate of No Child Left Behind), but to be meaningful it requires local pressure so as to change entrenched attitudes.

Sixth, we have the bright light of an expanding UCCS, an engine of economic development that can produce new innovations. The Silicon Valley in California proves that academic centers are the foundations of business prosperity. Let our own Digital Rockies serve this role here.

Seventh, as we focus on our indigenous talents and brain-power, we should also take advantage of the natural beauty that surrounds us. Perhaps the leadership of local tourism should be placed in the hands of thirty-something that can generate the kind of excitement the future of our town can enjoy.

Eighth, since attracting tourists and newcomers is still our vision of growth, let’s stop urban or suburban sprawl and focus on the center of town. If you visit any great city in America, you begin with downtown, and not some faraway development. Urban “filling” would also reduce the pressure on our inadequate infrastructure—from sewage lines to fire and police stations.

Ninth, in order to combat the impression that we are religious extremists, let’s emphasize religious diversity and harmony, agreeing on some common religious principles. UCCS’s Center for Religious Diversity and Public Life is only a starting point; the city should foster such initiatives to foster tolerance.

Tenth, if we agree to adopt any of the above initiatives and change our mindset as an emerging mid-size city rather than a small town below Pike’s Peak, we need to promote civility among all stakeholders, from the Mayor to City Council, all the way to every department head and city employee, and the rest of us. We need to learn to exchange ideas passionately but respectfully.

If we execute only half of these ideas in the next year or two, it’ll be amazing. If we execute them all, we would become a model city rather than a national laughing stock of religious fanatics and narrow-minded conservatives. We deserve a better reputation than that. But we must earn it first.

Raphael Sassower is professor of philosophy at UCCS. He can be reached at rsassower@gmail.com See previous articles at sassower.blogspot.com