Lexington, KY - One Saturday in May, I joined more than 150 community-minded individuals for Now What, Lexington? at Lexington's Carnegie Center. The "unconference" was organized by Progress Lex, a local community advocacy group. The inaugural Now What, Lexington? was held in April 2010, and leveraged ideas from the Creative Cities Summit held in Lexington just the month before.
This year's event featured dozens of 50-minute sessions on a range of community topics. Many involved bread-and-butter issues facing Lexington - economic development, non-profit incubators, Lexington's carbon footprint, health and wellness, a Louisville commuter rail line, government transparency through open data initiatives, local produce and agriculture, mixed-use housing, bicycle commuting, Lexington's emerging gaming software industry, the future of Centerpointe, "Untie the Sky," a public arts master plan, and many more.
I spent much of the day engrossed in discussions with other participants and attended sessions of personal interest, including meetings on locally grown produce, economic development, open government data, "Untie the Sky," and public art master plans.
There has been increased attention in recent years as to how Lexington can better nurture business entrepreneurship and startups. One of the main conclusions of Lexington's recently published Economic Development Strategic Plan is that entrepreneurship and small business growth will drive Lexington's future economy. The economic development session at Now What, Lexington? included a discussion on Lexington's role in promoting new business startups. We also discussed the merits of creating a new position in the Mayor's office − a small business liaison − who could serve as the city's point person for fostering a culture of entrepreneurship.
Readers of this magazine may already be familiar with open data initiatives and "Untie The Sky." I have written on these in previous columns, and both initiatives are currently pending before Urban County Council committees.
LFUCG's adoption of an open data policy would encourage the publishing of non-private government information in a computer accessible format, so that third parties could write software based on that data. (Think restaurant inspections tied to GPS maps.) The best place to see these kinds of apps in action is www.datasf.org. (You can also read my column on Gov 2.0 initiatives from last August.)
"Untie The Sky" is another local initiative, aimed at reducing urban clutter from overhead electrical power lines and utility poles. The massive tower and utility lines at the corner of Rose Street and Euclid Avenue are tragic examples of what Lexington will become if we don't find a solution to this mess.
Another session I attended discussed public art master planning. I just can't imagine any great city without exceptional local public art. The Picasso sculpture in front of Daley Plaza in Chicago is an iconic piece of art that defines Chicago. A public art master plan serves as a framework for developing government policies and funding solutions for public art. This is important to economic development, because community amenities such as public art help to attract and retain businesses and highly skilled employees. Public art contributes to the joy and satisfaction that people feel when working and living in a great city.
A tough economy is the perfect time to brainstorm and plan for the future. As our economy recovers, we can begin to put into action ideas that can make Lexington a better place. Now What, Lexington? was a great opportunity to start working toward Lexington's future.