Constructive Suggestions

After two weeks, some ideas, including a proposal for the comp plan process, have settled out of some of my thoughts on the SDAT process. I talk about it in my current column.

"There’s a tricky balancing act called for between those who will want the process to be a free-wheeling forum to say whatever’s on their minds and feel heard, and those who want to roll up their sleeves and work together on just what exactly our goals are for the city and its key assets, what we’re going to do about some of the tricky problems, and how we want to handle the hard trade-offs."

Comments

[Emma]

That latter is exactly what I was expecting and hoping for from the SDAT process, and I am still feeling so disappointed. If the powers that be won't present an opportunity to do it, I kinda want to try to create one. Only, who has the time!?

[duffbeer703]

You make really good points.

I'm of the opinion that you really need to narrow the scope down to avoid turning the entire session into BitchFest 2007. And while everyone has an opinion, the brunt of any plan is borne by <100,000 taxpayers, which limits what these plans can accomplish. A key ingredient is missing from many of the forlorn "plans" out there: a plan to pay for the work!

A comprehensive plan (as I understand it) inventories the resources available in the city, outlines broad development objectives and organizes existing data and specifies what additional data is needed.

You need to narrow the scope because people will dominiate the discussion with issues that are irrelevant to the plan. 787 is really ugly. But tearing down and replacing 787 with something better would literally cost billions. Unless you are coming to the table with a way to get the Federal or State government to fork out serious money to obliterate 787, it's just a fanciful, pie in the sky idea. Don't waste people's time with it.

I think you need to widen the audience beyond the neighborhood associations, which are self-selected groups that don't necessarily represent everyone. My neighborhood has an active association, which doesn't flyer the neighborhood... none of the 15-20 people on my block that I've asked knows anything about it! Get ads in Metroland and the TU. Get the process featured on Channel 9 or have the mayor talk to the guy on 590 about it.

[Miriam Axel-Lute]

Yes, we need to narrow in on some specifics, but knowing what what has been done around the country, I'm far slower than you to write things off as impossible and unpractical and irrelevant. We can't do everything, but we shouldn't start off by putting anything ambitious off limits.

And yes, definitely we need to get beyond the neighborhood associations.