The “Vision” Thing
There has been a lot of talk about “vision” in the current race for Mayor of Indianapolis. I have always said that “vision” is a lot like beauty, it’s in the eye of the beholder. However, I took some time yesterday to really think about that concept of “vision”. Now that I am in business for myself, I spend a lot more time in the car making trips to potential clients and the last few days have had me spending quite a bit of time in the doughnut counties. I set up meetings in the afternoons and then come back to Indianapolis. As I head back, I notice all the traffic heading in the other direction as folks return home to their bedroom communities. And that’s when it hit me. I believe the vision for Indianapolis should be that these folks don’t make that trip because they are staying in the city.
They are staying the city because they have an ample supply of good schools to choose from whether public, private, or charter. They are staying in the city because there is a solid infrastructure of roads and sewer in place. They don’t leave because crime is at a bare minimum. They stay because the taxes are not out of control. They stay because there are ample amenities for them to partake. They stay because a prudent mass transit system is in place. And most importantly, they stay because of the great quality of life the city of Indianapolis offers.
Believe it or not, I think Indianapolis is on the road to achieving that vision and had it not been for the national economy, it would be well on its way there. Already more than 15,000 jobs have regained since January 2011 taking the number of jobs lost from the great recession from 35,000 to 20,000. There is more school choice in some of the most impoverished neighborhoods in the city and streets and sidewalks are being repaved and resurfaced in neighborhoods that haven’t seen a steamroller in years. And even when we look at the recent spate in crime, unless you’re fighting with a friend at 2 a.m. over a woman or an Xbox and don’t already have a mugshot you’re not likely to die of lead poisoning in the form of a bullet.
Now is Indianapolis perfect? No, of course not. And good leadership is always striving to make improvements, but it is also making sure the basic “blocking and tacking” is getting done. I had a good friend tell me that he wanted city leadership that did more than “fill potholes”. I told him to get in his car and drive 250 miles to Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, Cincinnati or Louisville and he will find people who would love to have their potholes filled. And ponder this, while those other Midwestern cities are trying to figure how to pay for basic services, one of the big debates in this mayoral race is what to do with an additional $150 million from the Citzens Gas deal. Spend it on infrastructure or social programs? Despite what you think about either plan, that’s not a bad position to be in during the worst economy since the Great Depression.
So here is my vision for Indianapolis, a city where people don’t have to drive an hour to get home because they already live here.
