{news} Rolf Maurer in Fairfield County Weekly

[David Bedell]

The lead editorial in the
Weekly is Rolf's commentary on real vs. false localism.



David Bedell



http://www.fairfieldweekly.com/article.cfm?aid=14794



If Willimantic Can Do It...



Thursday, October 08, 2009 

By our readers

 


That chain businesses are
taking notice of a growing consumer consciousness that prizes buying
locally is gratifying, but only up to a point (“The Local Lie,” Fairfield County Weekly,
Sept. 17). As was the case with the push to weaken organic food
standards in the 1990s, big business is attempting to change
perceptions of what the public wants, rather than changing what it
offers.



Expecting
retailers like Wal-Mart to become localized is as reasonable as
expecting the proverbial lion to lie down with the lamb. They would no
longer be what they are if they tried. But there is another form of
false localism that is more subtle and pervasive.



In
the name of promoting the city’s economy, Stamford’s Downtown Special
Services District — in partnership with UBS and Heineken, among other
PR-hungry multinationals — channels city taxes to its activities,
limiting the full potential by which dollars spent in Stamford can
actually benefit Stamford, because so much of the funding for DSSD
programs leaves town.



The
current estimated expenses of DSSD operations for Stamford residents is
$195,000. Much could be saved by localizing the events themselves and
keeping more money circulating in town, while cultivating social bonds
and culture. 



No
one can contest how the DSSD has revitalized the Bedford Street/Broad
Street area since its inception in 1993. It has dramatically pulled
people to member shops and restaurants through a year-round series of
activities, ranging from September Arts & Crafts on Bedford and the
“Alive @ Five” concert series, as well as the (forthcoming)
cumbersomely-titled SAC Capital Advisors, LP Giant Balloon Inflation
Party. Still, can such franchised event management really equate with
the fostering of authentic vitality for any city?



Contrary
to DSSD Director of Retail Development Jacqueline Wetenhall’s stated
goal, there is more to robust commerce than having young professionals
dine downtown “to leave with shopping bags full of retail offerings.”
Truly independent commerce has as much to do with mutual ties of
familiarity and good will as it does with the provenance of the goods
and services being exchanged.



For
example, why can’t the majority of the performers at “Alive @ Five”
concerts be drawn from an area pool of up-and-coming talent, rather
than relying on name acts, like Blues Traveler or Sugar Ray? September
Arts & Crafts on Bedford could do more to welcome artists and
exhibits representing the high schools, UConn and the Loft Artists
Association? Over the years, some Stamfordites have acquired notoriety
for elaborate Halloween displays. It would have been fun and timely to
have included them, or have their input on a how-to presentation. 



Publicly-mediated
community events have been done elsewhere with enthusiastic success.
Cash-strapped Willimantic introduced do-it-yourself parades in recent
years, where residents improvised with boom boxes to create an event
with its own spontaneous character. Because no significant expenses are
involved, something like this could be duplicated in different sections
of Stamford — not just in pre-designated development zones, where
benefiting merchants must pay a membership fee.



The
only thing false about the creativity, conviviality and economy of such
alternative ways of building local commerce, is that, in fact, they are
about building community.



Rolf Maurer

Stamford Mayoral Candidate, Green Party

 		 	   		  
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