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    Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 7:06am
Journal story....

Goal of trip: Repeat Greenville’s success

GREENVILLE, S.C —
City officials and business leaders are hoping to bring a little southern magic back to Middletown.

They’re in Greenville, S.C., today and Wednesday meeting with city representatives to learn how they revitalized their downtown, a similar goal of Middletown leaders. The tour is being organized by Middletown Moving Forward, which said it wants to explore these topics during the tour:

• Coordination of economic development activities among various organizations for multiple commercial and industrial areas of the community;

• Downtown revitalization;

• Securing resources and investments for redevelopment;

• Business attraction, retention, and expansion

Greenville, with almost 61,000 residents, is located in the northwestern corner of South Carolina. The area is centrally situated between Charlotte, and Atlanta and is one of the fastest growing areas of the country and the fastest in that state, said Calista H. Smith, interim director of Middletown Moving Forward.

She said with more than 250 international firms, the greater Greenville area, also known as Upstate South Carolina, boasts the highest international investment per capita in the nation. The Central Business District covers approximately 300 acres within the larger downtown area of 1,118 acres. Office space downtown totals over 3 million square feet, accounting for over 1/3 of the total office space in the Greenville/Spartanburg area. Downtown Greenville’s daytime population is filled with 116,465 employees within five miles.

Greenville has become a restaurant destination for the region with 99 restaurants in the downtown area — roughly 20 percent of this total opened between 2010-2011. There are more than 1,700 condominium/apartment units in downtown.

In the last 12 years, Greenville’s population has risen by 3,200 people; the median income has gone from $33,000 to $41,000; and in the last four years, 471 buildings have been built with an average cost of $233,000.

During that same time, Middletown’s population has dropped nearly 3,000; its median income has fallen more than $600; and 67 buildings have been constructed with an average cost of $109,000.

Who’s on the trip

Some on those on the tour include: Larry Mulligan Jr., Middletown mayor; Dora Bronston and Anita Scott Jones, City Council members; Terry Sherrer, director of Middletown Area United Way; Rick Pearce, president of the Chamber of Commerce serving Middletown, Monroe and Trenton; Denise Hamet, economic development director; Michael Chikeleze, director of Cincinnati State Middletown; and Ken Cohen, president of Cohen Brothers.

Who they’re meeting

This morning the group will hear a “Greenville Before and After” presentation, then tour several local businesses, apartment developments near downtown, and meet with city officials. On Wednesday, the group will participate in a community leaders panel that will include the executive director of Greenville Forward; chair of the Greenville Area Development Corporation; vice president of economic development; and vice president for Strategy and Investment for the United Way of Greenville County

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE PADUCAH KY TRIP? I THOUGHT THAT TRIP WAS TO GET IDEAS FOR THE DOWNTOWN AREA. OTHER THAN THE PAC, WHAT WAS THE RESULT OF THAT TRIP?

AND WHY DOES THE TRIP HAVE TO BE JUST ABOUT IDEAS FOR THEIR DOWNTOWN. LIFE EXISTS OUTSIDE THE DOWNTOWN AREA DOESN'T IT? IS GREENVILLE A LOW INCOME CITY CHOCKED FULL OF SECTION? IF NOT, WHAT ARE THE SIMILARITIES? THE TWO CITIES MAY HAVE TOTALLY DIFFERENT DEMOGRAPHICS AND ENVIRONMENTS TO CREATE SUCCESS.

AHH YES, KEN COHEN. PRESIDENT OF THE MMF'ERS. UNITED WAY REP? CINCI STATE REP? WHY?
I'm so proud of my hometown and what it has become. Recall 'em all. Let's start over.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote skookumj Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 7:43am
who else is on the trip> any ideas?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 8:27am
Well I have been to this area and I can tell you for a fact....
IT HAS VERY LITTLE IN COMMON WITH MIDDLETOWN
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Neil Barille Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 9:38am
What good is this trip? These people don't have the background to even know what to look for in Greenville.  And what can be accomplished in person that you can't accomplish via a google search or paying a consultant?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote acclaro Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 10:25am
The biggest difference----the game-changer?

Greenville, no unions. Midsdletown, all unions. Analogous to going to China to find out why companies build there, to see people working for yen at 1/1000 of the cost in USA.

Greenville also has major intersection points (highway).

Also, when Charlotte collapsed, as a major financial market, businesses in NC, and SC relocated.

Having visited that area many times when my son was at Davidson in Rock Hills, Middletown is not, and will not, be Greenville. For many reasons.

Fun boondoggle for spring-break. I'd do Disneyworld.
'An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last.' - Winston Churchill
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote over the hill Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 10:32am
If this group thinks they are going to "mirror" Greenville they are going to need a mirror the size of the Hubble telescope. Just from the description in today's paper they cannot compete. Greenville is the fastest growing city in the state. They have 250 international firms. They have the highest international investment per capita in the nation. So again they are not looking at growth brought about by business they just want to look at their "downtown" They are wasting a trip and missing the entire point of Greenville's growth.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote acclaro Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 10:46am
I wish there was still the EDIT feature without a re-post, but, as there isn't, here's my observation after a post.

Middletown has never addressed nor captured, the reasons why the Middletown Hospital left; why Bishop Fenwick High School left; why CSH left; why Courtney Duff is shutting down, why Square D left, and so forth.

All said they needed to go where there was growth or image to attract younger professionals.

No one said because Middletown needed to revive downtown.

It would be helpful to digest council, why companies left Middletown, and then tweak your capabilities to bring new businesses into the city, with new residents.

But.....more importantly, the trip shows the Avis touch. You are trying.

There is a rumor they are heading down to Boeing to have it re-located to Middletown with Cincinnati State's aviation maintenance graduates.

Mr. Mulligan stated change was inevitable in his state of the union address regarding Middletown. Yet...they cannot comprehend what has changed Middletown and want to rebuild the past.

The needle is stuck on the phonograph. 
'An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last.' - Winston Churchill
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote VietVet Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 11:21am
acclaro:

"I wish there was still the EDIT feature without a re-post, but, as there isn't, here's my observation after a post."

You can edit your post by clicking the post options button and selecting edit. BUT.......be fast with you changes or a nice little yellow screen will appear eliminating your entire post and you get to start all over again typing from ground zero.

Just what I have experienced with post edits.



I'm so proud of my hometown and what it has become. Recall 'em all. Let's start over.
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acclaro:

"Mr. Mulligan stated change was inevitable in his state of the union address regarding Middletown. Yet...they cannot comprehend what has changed Middletown and want to rebuild the past"

I AGREE WITH HISSONER MULLIGAN CONCERNING CHANGE. UNFORTUNATELY, THE CHANGE IS CURRENTLY BEING FORCEFIT BY HIS LITTLE GROUP OF MMF'ERS AND IT IS LIKE A PUZZLE WHERE NONE OF THE PIECES ARE CUT TO FIT. HIS "CHANGE" HE TALKS ABOUT IS LIKE TRYING TO BRING CULTURE TO AN APPALACHIA AREA.

NOTE TO LARRY....CULTURE AND BLUE COLLAR MIX AS WELL AS WATER AND OIL. DO YOU UNDERSTAND THE LITTLE ANALOGY?

CASE IN POINT....THIS IS A BLUE COLLAR STEEL TOWN. ALWAYS HAS BEEN...ALWAYS WILL BE NO MATTER HOW HARD MULLIGAN AND THE DREAM MACHINE TRY TO INCORPORATE THE ARTZY CULTURE. YOU WOULD HAVE TO PURGE THE TOWN'S PERSONALITY TO CHANGE IT. THE OVERWHELMING MAJORITY DON'T WANT, DON'T UNDERSTAND AND DON'T IDENTIFY WITH ART. MULLIGAN, COHEN AND COMPANY ARE SMART ENOUGH (I THINK), TO KNOW WHAT TYPE OF PEOPLE WE HAVE HERE. THEY HAVE BEEN AROUND AS LONG AS I HAVE AND KNOW FULL WELL THAT THEIR TOWN THEME OF CULTURAL WON'T FLY HERE.

I FIND IT DAM IRONIC THAT THE CITY PUT OUT THE WELCOME MAT FOR ALL THE LOW INCOME PEOPLE IT COULD ATTRACT IN THE FORM OF SECTION 8- HUD, AND, AT THE SAME TIME, ARE TRYING TO PROMOTE AN AIRE OF CULTURE AND EDUCATION IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA. THE TWO ARENAS ARE POLAR OPPOSITES. MIDDLETOWN IS PECULIAR AS TO CONTRAST. IN THE INNER CORE DOWNTOWN AREA, THEY WANT ONLY CULTURAL ACTIVITY. REVOLVING AROUND THE INNER CORE, THERE ARE POCKETS OF DIFFERENT LEVELS OF POVERTY FROM ULTRA-LOW INCOME HANDOUTS THRU THE WORKING POOR, TO THE STRESSED MIDDLE CLASS JUST TRYING THE GET BY TO THE LOWER UPPER CLASS WITH SOME DISPOSABLE INCOME TO THE PROFESSIONALS AT THE UPPER TIER.

UNFORTUNATELY, THE LEVELS FROM MIDDLE CLASS ON DOWN TO THE ULTRA-LOW INCOME COMPRISE MOST OF THE CITY NOW. DIDN'T USE TO BE THAT WAY WHEN THIS CITY HAD SOME CLASS AND WAS RUN COMPETENTLY.

acclaro:

"But.....more importantly, the trip shows the Avis touch. You are trying"

TRYING HUH. WHO'S TRYING TO FOOL WHOM HERE. IT'S A BOONDOGGLE AND A COUPLE OF DAYS "OUT OF THE OFFICE" FOR MOST. THESE PEOPLE ARE NOT SMART ENOUGH TO KNOW THAT THEY ARE COMPARING APPLES TO ORANGES AS TO THE CLIMATE OF EACH TOWN. THEY HAVE OVER-ESTIMATED MIDDLETOWN'S POTENTIAL AND HAVE UNDERESTIMATED GREENVILLE, WHICH SOUNDS LIKE IT IS MUCH HEALTHIER THAN MIDDLETOWN. FROM THE DESCRIPTION IN THE STORY, IT SOUNDS LIKE GREENVILLE HAS DEVELOPMENTAL POTENTIAL AND HAS HAD SOME REAL MEASUREABLE SUCCESS WITH A DEGREE OF COMPETENT PEOPLE RUNNING THE SHOW AND MIDDLETOWN IS STILL SPRAYING INTO THE WIND. INCREDIBLE LACK OF REALIZATION FROM THE CITY TRAVELERS.
I'm so proud of my hometown and what it has become. Recall 'em all. Let's start over.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote over the hill Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 12:18pm
VV you have been here long enough to know Marty Kohler brought the SEC 8 vouchers here for the FED money. The fact that vouchers bring low income didn't occur to him. That's the mentality of those running the program. They wanted to send the program to Butler Co. Several years ago,remember, but now they have seen the money and they want the money but not the vouchers. Well I guess it doesn't work that way with HUD.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote blue7 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 6:02pm
Maybe Mr.McCrabb can ask them (Greenville) about Richard Florida's recent article about how places that boomed from "Meds and Eds" will not be sustainable. Kind of like our steel town.

If you google Richard Florida, you will read a bunch of opinion pieces. He was the "it" guy in Urban Development Theory in the early 2000's. We aren't the only city feeling the pain from Florida's ideas about the creative class (young hipster technology/artists). If you build it, they will come, and by build, he meant cram them downtown. I would link the articles but I'm mobile right now. Mr. Robinette brought Florida to Dayton in the early to mid 00's. Then, Wright State, I believe, brought him back, which started the DaytonCreate movement. There's even an article quoting Steve Coon saying that he follows Florida's ideas about Urban Development. I guess we couldn't afford Florida's steep costs, or we already Robinette who knew all about Florida. The problem though, was that Florida's theories weren't panning out for cities the way the should have. He even admitted to it, around 09, I think? He shifted his focus, kind of. We joined the National Mainstreet program, which had Florida as their keynote speaker. Bike paths are even part of his plans.

Sorry about my choppy writing. I was planning on writing a big post about this. But since they are down there, I wanted to touch on it. If you look all this stuff up, you'll find all of the information. I just think we need to stop putting our tax money in to this. It's time to let these businesses try on their own and focus on the highway area. Or other areas of town. Maybe that's why they distanced themselves from certain groups? Maybe none of this really matters, or I'm completely wrong. 


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 6:26pm

VET - "THESE PEOPLE ARE NOT SMART ENOUGH TO KNOW THAT THEY ARE COMPARING APPLES TO ORANGES AS TO THE CLIMATE OF EACH TOWN."

Vet 
This is one time I must disagree with you....this is like comparing a grape to a wat
ermelon.
It ain't even close. 

 

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote acclaro Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 7:36pm
b7, most scholars mocked Florida's theories associated with gays and liberal artsy folks years ago, by showing highly educated technologists increased urban renewal, not the merge of lifestyle. Please tell me this is not why the city has wasted $ MM on downtown, associated with such nonsense espoused by Florida.

I liken the Greenville trip to going to a major league game 3-4 times weekly, with the hope and intent one would become a professional big show player.....through osmosis. See it, replicate it, and they will come.

Please tell me they aren't being led by Robinette and the Florida Kool-aid. The final nail is landing soon on the Middletown coffin.    
'An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last.' - Winston Churchill
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote blue7 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 8:04pm
Acclaro, haven't they already? It seems like it to me. I was a huge fan of the downtown revitalization until recently. I hope I'm wrong and we bring in a bunch of new people, sadly the data doesn't add up.

There's an article online about West Chester building luxury apartments. Also about the new city manager candidates. Mr. Atkins and Mr Landen. What do you think about Lococo (sp?).
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote over the hill Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 8:55pm
They better have those names listed in tomorrow's Middletown Jounal or I will cancel my subscription. They have to know in Middletown that Doug Adkins and Les Landen have proven their inability to be taken seriously by all the lies and half truths just in this Bank One deal lately. They had no intentions of following the state or local laws on this deal. Anyone in their right mind would not take their application seriously.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote acclaro Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 9:37pm
This is a very weak group. Ideally, you'd want one from Ohio, associated with the labor and pension issues.

Hudson, Ohio, where one candidate was city manager, is currently filling a position for city manager.

Steubenville former manager is only one that has a demographic equivalent, but a city of under 20,000; Cathy Davison, former Steubenville city manager

Les moves to city manager and Doug rewarded with law director position. Well, now the reason for its okay to put signs out early in a levy and ram 7 to 5 city council positions. They owe him one.

Abandon ship, its on taking water very fast.

I was thinking what excellent leaders there were in Middletown over the years, simply massive business titans.

Then, Armco pulled plug, and moved to New Jersey.

Perry Thatcher and Bill Akers tried to fill the void.

Then, it was gone, the massive, intelligent, leadership vacuum. Replaced with....MMF and a council set up for passing levies, not business development.

Its over. No Walking Tall in this land built on a marsh.

Just look at a city manager that comes from a historic district. That is the narrow field.

But, Les moves up, Doug moves over, and the nightmare from 2000 forward, continues.

Best Advice ever receIved; Know when to cut your losses. Its time. 

   
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote over the hill Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 10:03pm
That would be a great combination with Les and Doug in those positions. The excutive session would be a revolving door of back room deals that only a chosen few would be privy to. Last person out, turn out the lights. Light the fuse and bring it all down.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote acclaro Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 22 2014 at 10:35pm
Greenville or Detroit?

Vegas says Detroit, 20 pt spread.


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The group may plant some trees and flowers.

It's important to show that they have a plan, whether they do or not.
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Posted: 12:00 a.m. Thursday, April 24, 2014

Greenville attendees hope to start working soon

By Rick McCrabb

Staff Writer

GREENVILLE, S.C. — 

Now that the group of Middletown leaders and officials have returned home after touring Greenville, S.C. for the last three days, it’s time to get to work, they said.

The group met with Greenville representatives and took walking tours of the city’s revitalized downtown that has experienced tremendous growth over the last 30 years. Boarded up buildings have been replaced by vibrant businesses, making Greenville the postcard for cities seeking similar success.

Calista Smith, interim director of Middletown Moving Forward — the group that organized the trip for about 25 people, said she hopes it can show progress within the next 60 days, though renovating downtown is expected to take years, if not decades.

A group from Middletown toured Paducah, Ky., six years ago, and met about once a month for more than one year, said T. Duane Gordon, executive director of the Middletown Community Foundation. From that tour and follow-up meetings, the Pendleton Art Center was created, which has spurred additional downtown business.

Now the group hopes to do the same with what it learned in Greenville.

They plan to solicit ideas from students at the city’s two community colleges, Miami University Middletown and Cincinnati State Middletown, with a partial scholarship possibly being one prize for the best suggestion. They feel it’s important to listen to opinions of younger people.

Members of the group, after being encouraged by Terry Sherrer, executive director of the Middletown Area United Way, volunteered to spruce up the former site of Swallen’s, where the city has hosted farmer’s markets, on June 21. The group may plant some trees and flowers. Sherrer said it’s important for the group to show Middletown that it has an action plan.

“We have to take a step,” Sherrer said. “Lay the first brick.”

Later he added: “We have the right people to get it done.”

Several others in the group agreed.

Rick Pearce, president of the Chamber of Commerce serving Middletown, Monroe and Trenton, said renovating the downtown is “a challenge” and “there is no magic answer. We just need to get to work.”

Community volunteer Mike Scorti said since the Paducah trip, the city has done an “enormous job” bringing in retail business.

“We are on the right track,” he said.

Selecting manager ‘critical decision’

Ken Cohen, president of Cohen Brothers, said the city is facing a “critical decision” as it selects its next city manager. City Manager Judy Gilleland is retiring in early June and the city recently released the names of the 29 applicants.

On Wednesday, while visiting Greenville, S.C., Cohen said Middletown doesn’t need another administrator, rather an innovator, someone who can “take the city forward.”

He also stressed that if none of the applicants fit the qualities the city is seeking, more resumes should be accepted.

“Do not hire the wrong person,” he said. “Don’t settle.”

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Well alright......the "aftermath" of the Greenville trip from your Journal...

Greenville attendees hope to start working soon

GREENVILLE, S.C. —
Now that the group of Middletown leaders and officials have returned home after touring Greenville, S.C. for the last three days, it’s time to get to work, they said.

I THOUGHT THEY HAVE BEEN WORKING. SURE HAVE BEEN SPENDING OUR MONEY DOWN THERE FOR SOMETHING, RIGHT?

The group met with Greenville representatives and took walking tours of the city’s revitalized downtown that has experienced tremendous growth over the last 30 years. Boarded up buildings have been replaced by vibrant businesses, making Greenville the postcard for cities seeking similar success.

Calista Smith, interim director of Middletown Moving Forward — the group that organized the trip for about 25 people, said she hopes it can show progress within the next 60 days, though renovating downtown is expected to take years, if not decades.

PROGRESS IN THE NEXT 60 DAYS? AND IT MAY TAKE YEARS IF NOT DECADES? IN OTHER WORDS, SHE DOESN'T HAVE A CLUE HOW LONG THIS PIPE DREAM WILL TAKE (AND HOW MUCH MONEY IT WILL WASTE).

A group from Middletown toured Paducah, Ky., six years ago, and met about once a month for more than one year, said T. Duane Gordon, executive director of the Middletown Community Foundation. From that tour and follow-up meetings, the Pendleton Art Center was created, which has spurred additional downtown business.

SO THE OUTCOME FROM THE PADUCAH BOONDOGGLE WAS ONE BUILDING WITH UNSTEADY TENENT NUMBERS WITH A FEW RESIDUALS THAT HAVE GONE IN AND OUT OF BUSINESS SINCE THEN?

Now the group hopes to do the same with what it learned in Greenville.

AGAIN, ONE BUILDING THAT HAS COME AND GO TENENTS AND A FEW RESIDUALS THAT GO IN AND OUT OF BUSINESS?

They plan to solicit ideas from students at the city’s two community colleges, Miami University Middletown and Cincinnati State Middletown, with a partial scholarship possibly being one prize for the best suggestion. They feel it’s important to listen to opinions of younger people.

IDEAS FROM JUST STUDENTS AND YOUNG PEOPLE? IT'S "IMPORTANT" TO LISTEN TO YOUNG PEOPLE? YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE ATTENDING COLLEGE HERE WILL MOVE AWAY AS SOON AS THEY HAVE THEIR DEGREE. THEY DON'T CARE WHAT HAPPENS TO THE DOWNTOWN AFTER THEY HAVE GOTTEN WHAT THEY WANT FROM IT. THEY HAVE MADE IT A "GAMESHOW" WITH A PRIZE FOR THE BEST SUGGESTION? HOW CHILDISH. NO,YOU WOULD BE WISE TO SOLICIT IDEAS FROM THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY, BOTH YOUNG AND OLDER. BUT, OF COURSE, BY DOING THAT, THEY MAY HEAR IDEAS THAT DON'T FIT THEIR ALREADY PLANNED IDEAS. THIS IS JUST A DOG AND PONY SHOW TO APPEASE THE MASSES. THEY WILL DO AS THEY ARE DIRECTED BY COHEN AND HIS MMF'ERS. ALWAYS HAVE.

Members of the group, after being encouraged by Terry Sherrer, executive director of the Middletown Area United Way, volunteered to spruce up the former site of Swallen’s, where the city has hosted farmer’s markets, on June 21. The group may plant some trees and flowers. Sherrer said it’s important for the group to show Middletown that it has an action plan.

PLANTING SOME TREES AND FLOWERS IS AN ACTION PLAN? SERIOUSLY? A FARMER'S MARKET IN THE PAST? C'MON, WHERE'S THE MEAT AND POTATOES/ REALLY GET SOME VIABLE THINGS DONE THINKING HERE?

“We have to take a step,” Sherrer said. “Lay the first brick.”

Later he added: “We have the right people to get it done.”

WHAT DOES THIS STATEMENT MEAN? GET WHAT DONE SPECIFICALLY? AND WHAT QUALIFIES AS THE "RIGHT PEOPLE"

Several others in the group agreed.

THAT'S NICE. AND.....?

Rick Pearce, president of the Chamber of Commerce serving Middletown, Monroe and Trenton, said renovating the downtown is “a challenge” and “there is no magic answer. We just need to get to work.”

JUST "NEED TO GET TO WORK". HMMM. I THINK SOMEONE ELSE EARLIER IN THE ARTICLE SAID THE SAME THING. AND.....? WORK ON WHAT? START WHERE WITH THE WORK? WHAT'S THE GAMEPLAN? TARGET TO ACCOMPLISH?

Community volunteer Mike Scorti said since the Paducah trip, the city has done an “enormous job” bringing in retail business.

WHERE IN THE HELL IS SCORTI LIVING? WHAT PAIR OF ROSE-COLORED GLASSES HAD HE BOUGHT? CLASSIC CASE OF DENIAL...."ENORMOUS JOB" BRINGING IN RETAIL BUSINESS. SERIOUSLY SCORTI?

“We are on the right track,” he said.

RIGHT TRACK TO WHERE? A DEAD END? A BRICK WALL? ANOTHER CLUSTER?

Selecting manager ‘critical decision’

Ken Cohen, president of Cohen Brothers, said the city is facing a “critical decision” as it selects its next city manager. City Manager Judy Gilleland is retiring in early June and the city recently released the names of the 29 applicants.

On Wednesday, while visiting Greenville, S.C., Cohen said Middletown doesn’t need another administrator, rather an innovator, someone who can “take the city forward.”

AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, SOMEONE WHO WILL AGREE TO FOLLOW DIRECTIONS FROM MY MMF GROUP. COHEN, THE DAM CITY HASN'T BEEN "TAKEN FORWARD" IN THE LAST THREE DECADES. THAT'S WHY WE ARE IN THE SHAPE WE ARE IN. ( BY THE WAY KEN, YOU SEEM VERY INTERESTED IN DIRECTING THE ACTIVITY HERE. WHEN ARE YOU MOVING BACK TO MIDDLETOWN FROM MAINEVILLE?)

He also stressed that if none of the applicants fit the qualities the city is seeking, more resumes should be accepted.

“Do not hire the wrong person,” he said. “Don’t settle.”

HIRE A PERSON WHO WILL ACCEPT THE MMF DOCTRINE, GO ALONG WITH THE CLUB MENTALITY AND BE ANOTHER PUPPET FOR MY GROUP.

ISN'T THAT WHAT IS GOING TO REALLY HAPPEN WHEN ALL THE SMOKE CLEARS FOLKS?

I'm so proud of my hometown and what it has become. Recall 'em all. Let's start over.
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Bocephus View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Bocephus Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 24 2014 at 11:59am
http://www.daytondailynews.com/videos/news/video-mayor-mulligan-talks-with-jns-rick-mccrabb/vCYQfH/
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote acclaro Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 24 2014 at 12:58pm
Middletown's biggest problem today and the past 40 years, is leadership void. Its not that there aren't extremely bright, innovators willing to help the city rethink its position, and reposture. There are, bright, ready, and willing. The problem is the giants of commerce left, and what has filled it are mini versions of individuals having come from old enterprises and industry sectors; paper, box making, widgets, recycling. These aren't innovators, disruptive thinkers, they are in businesses which are stagnant and don't change. There aren't innovators in public sector administration. Its the copy cat, follow mindset. Hamilton has a perceived innovator, so we have to get an innovator. Grab the buzz word of the day, of the month---innovation, accelerator, change agent.

Memo to council and MMF-  you have a base stable as a non profit, AKS could be bought, destroying the city entirely. Don't think out 20 years; you have 2-3. Get a Mayor to do the heavy lifting innovation facilitation, and expand the role of the finance, revitalization, and public safety management to operate as a team city manager replacement. The Mayor should be full-time, not twice monthly, and passing out plagues for merit badges.          
'An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last.' - Winston Churchill
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 27 2014 at 8:18am

Posted: 12:00 a.m. Sunday, April 27, 2014

Revitalizing downtown will take time, money, commitment

By Rick McCrabb

Staff Writer

 

GREENVILLE  The “before” and “after” pictures flashed on the screen almost didn’t look like the same place, except to those in the audience, the photos were believable because they’ve seen dilapidated buildings before.

During a three-day tour of Greenville, S.C. last week, about 25 Middletown officials and business leaders were shown black-and-white pictures of downtown Greenville from the late 1970s and more recent color pictures from the same locations. The photos from nearly 40 years ago looked eerily similar to how parts of downtown Middletown look today.

There were boarded up businesses and sparse shoppers, a far cry from how Greenville looks today.

Since Greenville started revitalizing its downtown, the city and its investors — through private and public partnerships — have spent hundreds of millions of dollars over the last 35 years. Greenville officials and residents said the money was well spent. And a local group, part of Middletown Moving Forward, which organized the tour, agreed after staying three days in the city, meeting with officials and walking downtown.

The lessons learned were many, they said, yet simple too: It took time and money — and lots of both — to turn Greenville from a dying city to a vibrant community that attracts 5.3 million visitors a year.

If Middletown hopes to accomplish the same, financial support and patience are paramount, the leaders said.

Since 1979 — one city official called Greenville a “35-year overnight success story” — the city has completed about 15 major renovations, five more projects are under way and five more are on the drawing board. And about every project was funded through public and private partnerships, city officials said. Today, it appears that most of a one-mile stretch of Main Street downtown was just constructed, and the countless retail shops, restaurants and bars that line the street were crowded last week. Those from Middletown said Greenville felt and looked like a college town, which was odd considering there are no major universities in the city.

The two downtown anchors are the Hyatt Regency Hotel that received an extensive renovation in 2012 and Fluor Field, which opened in 2006 after a record 10 months of construction. Public investment of $8.5 million coupled with private investments of $20.7 million made the baseball project a reality, and today it’s home of the Greenville Drive, a Class A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. It resembles a smaller Fifth Third Field, home of the Dayton Dragons.

Between the hotel and ball park are numerous structures, probably none more impressive than the Peace Center for the Performing Arts, which was constructed in 1990 for $42 million — $13 million from the Peace family led the significant private sector contributions, $6.5 million from city funds, $6 million from a state bond issue and $1.5 million from Greenville County. The majority of city funds were from tax increment financing, officials said. The city provided all land assembly, utility work and landscaping. The park encompassing the grounds of the Peace Center is linked by a pedestrian bridge to the historic Reedy River Falls Park and then to Cleveland Park, the city’s major recreation park.

Downtown is dotted with water features, sculptures, historic markers, directional signs, while most of the parking lots are hidden by retail businesses or apartments/condominiums. Only a few of the businesses downtown are national chains.

“We wanted what was unique to the area,” said Nancy Whitworth, deputy city manager and economic and community development director.

Throughout the rebirth process, Greenville officials said it was “critical” to maintain a balance of retail, restaurants and bars, entertainment venues, hotels, apartments and condominiums. They didn’t want downtown to turn into an entertainment district, Whitworth said.

Hank Hyatt, from the Greenville Chamber of Commerce, said it’s important for the city to have a “consistent look and feel to attract businesses and residents.” From 2000 to 2012, Greenville’s population increased by 3,260, from 56,001 to 59,261. During that same period, Middletown’s population dropped by nearly 3,000.

Whitworth said Greenville has made its downtown “a major destination.”

She added the city has become “the place where people want to be.” She credited the success on a vision from previous city officials and qualified leaders who had to ability to convert those ideas into reality.

City Manager John Castile admitted Greenville caught “lightning in a bottle.” He said it was a combination of good timing and the city, its leaders and residents all coming together. He encouraged those from Middletown to “take risks” and then celebrate those successes when they happen.

Some of Greenville’s successes have been unique. The city’s struggling mall — those on the trip said they immediately thought of the Towne Mall Galleria — was converted into classrooms for several college branch campuses. Once known as the “Textile Center of the South,” Greenville now is home to innovation, higher education and technology.

T. Duane Gordon, president of the Middletown Community Foundation, said after three days in Greenville he realized “there are success stories out there.” He said the trip gave the group guidance how Greenville turned its downtown around.

Not surprising, he said Middletown’s biggest hurdle will be money. He said Greenville officials repeatedly told the group the importance of public and private partnerships to fund the projects.

“That’s an obstacle that has to be overcome,” Gordon said.

Middletown economic developer Denise Hamet agreed. She said the city can’t do it by themselves; and they don’t want to do it by themselves.

“It takes a team,” she said. “We have to look at our assets and see what we can achieve.”

Greenville still has its struggles. During a driving tour of the event, those from Middletown saw pockets of rundown neighborhoods, and they were told one of the goals of the city is to expand the renovations off Main Street. They were surprised to hear that Greenville has as many as 1,500 homeless people living there, and it’s a constant struggle to divert them off the business district.

Russell Stall, executive director of Greenville Forward, a visioning organization, said he was raised in the city, but moved his family to Atlanta in 1978 because his hometown had become “a horrible place.” He moved back 18 years later, a decision he never regretted.

“It’s easy to have pride in a place you love,” he said.

Mike Stautberg, president of Atrium Medical Center Foundation, spent time in the Greenville area when he worked for a healthcare company there. He remembers back 25 years ago when Greenville was beginning its improvement process.

“They were tired of the decline they were in,” he said. “Now it’s a very vibrant, very wonderful city. I knew they were going to improve, but I didn’t think they’d get this far. They are moving at paces that are hard to understand. Things are happening, things are coming after them.”

As for attracting new businesses, Stall said it’s all about perception. He said with a chuckle that some outsiders say they don’t know where Greenville is located, or if its residents wear shoes.

“But if we get them here, we got them,” he said.

Anita Scott Jones, a Middletown council member, said she left Greenville inspired because she knows “we can turn our city around; we are turning our city around, one piece at a time.”

Terry Sherrer, director of the Middletown Area United Way, added that if a community comes together with “a common cause anything is possible.”

Rick Pearce, president of the Chamber of Commerce serving Middletown, Monroe and Trenton, said the group needs to hold community meetings and discuss where residents want the city to go next. That’s only the first step, he said.

“We are not going to duplicate what they have done here,” he said. “We need to take ideas back to see what will work.”

Whatever is done will take time, warned Ken Cohen, president of Cohen USA and Middletown Moving Forward.

“We are starting 30 years behind them,” he said of Middletown’s plan to revitalize its downtown. “We have the resources and the abilities and it’s going to be a long struggle.”

Then he added: “Everybody has to be in. It starts with the first step.”

 

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TonyB Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Apr 27 2014 at 9:46am
Does it really need to be said? At what point does the mantra "take a risk" lose all meaning? How many times are the citizens of Middletown going to be sold a bill of goods with this mantra only to watch the venture fail? Do I need to recap all the risky ventures the city of Middletown have embarked upon over the last 40 years that have gone wrong? The whole idea that we're somehow "behind" other cities in exploring risky ventures to revitalize Middletown is disengenuous and dangerous to solving the problems in the city. At this point, it would be far better to work on improvements to the infrastructure than coming up with a new "risky" scheme. Stop making up elaborate plans and fix what is wrong. Vision is no substitute for competence and this town has had enough "risk" without reward.
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