Squelching The Squelchers
To a certain extent, the Roanoke Valley has been insulated from the effects of the current recession. That is not to say that things are rosy here, but we are doing better than folks in other parts of the country. There are large numbers of unsold homes on the market, but we haven’t seen real estate values plummet as they have elsewhere. The Jobs section in the Roanoke Times has been reduced to 4 pages, but we haven’t witnessed the massive layoffs or business closings that have devastated other towns and cities. We’re treading water at a time when many other communities are drowning.
The reality is that Roanoke rarely suffers to the same extent as the rest of the nation when times are bad. It’s as if we are somehow immune to the bust portion of the typical boom and bust cycle. While many might view this as a positive aspect of life in the Valley, unfortunately, it is only half of the story. Through our deep seated resistance to change, we have also made ourselves immune to the boom.
Among certain groups in the Roanoke Valley, opposition to any proposed change is the default position. Whether it’s building a new art museum, demolishing an obsolete stadium, or renovating the Market Building, a sizable portion of the population will always protest, driven as much by reflex as by reason. Unless we can somehow overcome this obsession with preserving the status quo, we will continue to miss out on opportunities for economic growth.
I left Roanoke in 1982 and set off in search of opportunities that were not available locally. I lived in several major metropolitan areas during this time including, Richmond, Charlotte and Washington, DC. I witnessed first-hand the benefits and the drawbacks of the explosive growth taking place in these areas. I also lived in Buffalo, New York, and saw the devastating effects of a local economy in decline.
When I returned to Roanoke in 2002, I was amazed to see that virtually nothing had changed. It was if the entire valley had been encapsulated in a drop of amber and fossilized. Roanoke in 2002 was virtually indistinguishable from Roanoke in 1982. Those people whose mission in life is to keep things “just so” probably viewed that as a good thing. To everyone else, it meant 2 decades of lost opportunity.
The geographic realities of our location will always be a limiting factor in our growth. The kind of runaway sprawl found in places like Richmond and Charlotte is simply not possible here unless we figure out a way to literally move mountains. On the other hand, the agonizing decline experienced by cities like Buffalo is a distinct possibility. If you need examples closer to home, look no further than Huntington or Charleston to see what we might become if we refuse to embrace the future.
The people who are the most vocal opponents of change in the valley are often the same ones who bemoan the fact that their children and grand-children are forced to look elsewhere for employment opportunities. They still blame the railroad for the lack of jobs, and would prefer to wallow in the past than to consider the needs of future generations. Unfortunately we find these people in all walks of life, from the factory floor to the mayor’s office.
Those of us who believe that developing a vibrant and diverse economy in the Roanoke Valley is an urgent priority need to make our voices heard. In the introduction to his book, The Rise of The Creative Class, Richard Florida speaks about the need to “squelch the squelchers”. We need to drown out the voices of those who stand for nothing but oppose everything. We need to convince our fellow Roanokers that change is the price of opportunity. We must make it clear that economic growth cannot occur in a state of suspended animation. The future is inevitable. We can either embrace it and reap the benefits, or ignore it and continue to fall behind.
Bravo!
I read a great article last night by Richard Florida in The Atlantic about how things are going to fall out in the US after this economic disaster runs its course. His major point is that we are rushing toward an economy driven by ideas and creativity, rather than by manufacturing or industry.
In the past 20 years, there has been a major shift in demographics by level of education. We used to have a fairly even distribution of college graduates per total population nationwide. The shift is to the northeast and the west coast, which now have proportionately twice as many college grads as the midwest. That’s because the idea driven economy brings idea driven people together. Not to say that a college degree is required to be part of that group, but it is an good indicator, overall.
That’s why I’m glad Roanoke has finally seen fit to invest in things like the new medical school, the art museum, and the trolley buses. Without things just like that we will go down the path of other declining cities, although much more slowly, since we were never really a boomtown to begin with. We didn’t have the huge upsurge in real estate prices, so the downfall is much less also.
I think Roanoke is going to come out OK in the end, with some obvious pain along the way. The loss of Mill Mountain Theater was a sad result of the times, and the school budget issue is obviously discouraging. In the end, though, I think the City will come through with a leaner, more efficient school system. Sounds like a couple of the school buildings were in need of retirement anyway.