[author's note: This was originally posted over onto my personal blog, edwardjensen.net, in response to a challenge put forth by several local bloggers. Read on...]
Ever since Mayor Phil Gordon’s State of Downtown address that seemed to go over like a lead balloon, people have been sharing their reasons, opinions, and assessments on Downtown Phoenix and how it can be improved. For starters, there’s Tyler Hurst’s analysis that sparked tonight’s Radiate Phoenix event, another analysis by Derek Neighbors, Yuri Artibise’s analysis, and others have thrown their voices into the discussion. Some have been productive voices offering concrete solutions, some have denounced the blind cheerleading that goes on, but all voices have been heard and ruminated.
Surprise: this is another post on that same topic. But, as preface, remember that I’m in the Urban and Metropolitan Studies program at Arizona State University, and as such, this is what we study. What makes cities work? What makes them not work?
Why is Downtown Phoenix not what we want it to be? How can it get there? I’m prepared to argue that Phoenix (its downtown, the city as a whole, and the region) focuses too much time and energy on the things that bring people here but not keep them here. In August, I wrote a series of posts that explored this issue. As proof for this thesis, know that for every five people that are enfranchised by the area and come here, three people are disenfranchised and leave (source: Making Sense of Place – Phoenix: The Urban Desert).
It’s important to take a step back and look at the region’s recent history. After World War II ended, those that were stationed in the various military outposts in this region came and settled here with their family. With the land readily accessible, developers built new houses on virgin land outside the central core. This began, inevitably, a culture and a mindset that if something isn’t just quite right, then just forget about it and build again—anew. Downtown Phoenix began to become desolate, and so rather than quickly fixing the problem when it would have been an easy fix, we (true to form) ignored the problem and built new urban villages away from the core. Those who could afford to leave did; those who couldn’t became disenfranchised as policy and governance focused on the new things, because they were politically more “sexy.”
This pattern repeated and repeated and that’s how we’re in this present state. Rather than maintaining and sustaining present infrastructure, we’re always looking for that next “crown jewel” in the desert.
Downtown Phoenix has many different crown jewels that are already here. Just because something is new and shiny does not mean that it’s automatically one of those jewels. Let’s focus on that infrastructure which is already here. From a physical infrastructure point of view, what’s here already is fantastic. Now we have to fill in the gaping holes with a sustainable people infrastructure.
What is this people infrastructure? I’m thinking places where people go: bars, restaurants, coffee shops, schools, parks, etc. This is what academics like to call third places—places outside of one’s home and office.
What can we do to support this people infrastructure? Make it a habit to shop and buy local. Go beyond our elected leaders’ response to shopping local (what seems like mere lip service). Tell friends, family, fellow students, colleagues, coworkers, anyone, and everyone about your favorite local places. And go with them to these places! I cannot tell you how much it pains me to see so many Starbucks cups carried by students, faculty, and staff on the ASU Downtown Phoenix campus, given the fact that the wonderful Fair Trade Café is set in the Civic Space Park.
How do we “fix” Phoenix? Recognize our past. Learn from our mistakes. Diversify how and what we build. Recognize that a healthy city needs a vibrant downtown core. Focus on institutions that keep people here instead of those that just attract new blood.
-Edward Jensen
epilogue. Join me in making a pledge to purchase all your holiday gifts at locally-owned shops across the Valley. If you’re throwing a party or preparing a big meal for your family to mark the season, shop at places like the Phoenix Urban Market or, if you must go to a supermarket, then there’s Bashas’.
