Electing To Talk About The Things That Matter

Contrary to the opinion of many economic development officials, tax freezes are not an indicator of success for Memphis.

Rather, they are clear indications of our failure to create the more competitive city that we need for a new economic era.

In other words, for 20 years, we have had an over-reliance on tax freezes, AKA payment-in-lieu-of-taxes, while complaining that we had to do it because we don’t have enough arrows in our business incentive quiver. In that entire time, there’s been no significant movement to correct the problem, and instead, we just stay content in giving away taxes to make companies love us.

Rather than selling themselves at a discount -- cheap land and cheap labor and tax give-aways – cities that are succeeding are investing in better workers, high-quality universities, quality of life and efficient public services.

These should be major issues in the upcoming city mayor's election, because our city is in a perilous place right now. We're bleeding people, and more importantly, hemorrhaging income. We've averaged a loss of three 25-34 year-olds every day for the past 18 years.

So, what are some of the issues that should be discussed as part of a comprehensive economic growth plan? Here's some of the issues on our list:

• Investments in Universities. Universities are seedbeds for the Knowledge Economy. Cities with research universities have a head start in this economy, because they create the innovation and the intellectual capital needed today. Meanwhile, we are one of the fortunate few cities with our own College of Art, and it should be leveraged as a hub for the creative culture that attracts talented workers.

• Redevelopment in the Urban Core. Memphis has significant underdeveloped and vacant land. The infrastructure in these older areas has been paid for and their reuse makes the wisest investment of scarce public funds. Memphis is a shrinking city and we need to create a new formula for analyzing annexation (and possibly deannexation) that often distracts our attention for the area that matters most - the urban core.

• Balanced Transportation Policy. Memphis should lobby federal and state government to revamp its allocation regulations for urban areas. Too often, federal funding has continued traditional patterns of spending on new roads in suburban areas while neglecting the importance of investing in urban redevelopment and mass transit. Local government should adopt a "complete streets" policy for all transportation policies and it should set out to provide a 21st century public transit system for our region.

• Technology Clusters. Wise cities develop an area of specialization within the technology field based upon university research, biomedical assets, etc. Clusters provide a competitive edge and a critical mass that are important to economic growth. That’s why when we want to see the future, we need to look toward the Bioworks Foundation. Also, the Foundation teaches us that our best chances for success in the future is in defining our distinctive niches.

• Local Innovation. The best answers to the future begin on our own Main Street today. Solutions from another city transplanted or replicated are less successful because they are artificial. Our best answers are our own, answers produced organically from a reservoir of innovation and creativity that is embedded throughout Memphis. That doesn't mean that we should not draw inspiration from other cities' successes, but we should resist the temptation to move them wholesale to our city.

• Understanding Our Competitive Context. Memphis starts with a strong dose of honesty, understanding its competitive context, including market and demographic trends in the region and its strengths and liabilities. Most of all, we need to use new measures that matter in the knowledge economy rather than on the indicators from traditional economic development. Memphis can find its distinctive niche to leap frog ahead of other cities, but it must be based on solid research that sparks more imaginative strategies. Most of all, it needs to begin immediately.

• Fixing the Basics. Local government needs to concentrate on fixing the basics, such as safety, taxes, services, land, infrastructure and schools. Governments must look for ways to streamline its structure and improve public services. A foundation of efficient, effective public services is what successful economic growth is built on, and setting aside all the grand projects and big plans, what the public wants most is a city that is safe, clean and attractive.

• Acting (As Well As Talking) Regionally. Memphis talks a good game of regionalism, but we’ve never truly engrained regional thinking into our plans and actions. Too often, we lapse into a “we versus them” mentality and a “if you’re winning, we must be losing” attitude when it comes to our neighboring cities and counties. Economic activity and innovation occur in a regional context, and we ignore this at our peril. It is increasingly clear that Memphis and its suburbs are inextricably linked into a single economic unit, and the war of words serves neither of us.

• Vibrant Culture. To compete, Memphis must be an attractive, dynamic place. Vibrant arts and culture - think Memphis Art Park - are powerful ways of creating the appealing, enjoyable quality of life needed to attract and retain the best and brightest young workers. Too often, we treat our culture - that's with a small "c" as in our history and character - as tourist amenities, but in truth, its value is much broader since quality of life is a chief determinant in workforce growth. That's why arts planning should be as much about creating a culture of creativity as raising money for the anchors of the arts community.

• Thinking and Acting Collaboratively. This requires a shift in leadership styles from traditional authoritarian models to a new environment of inclusion, mutual influence and community building. Opening the door wider to all segments of the community and inviting new voices to engage in decision-making is the mark of a mature and competitive city. It also demands that city government get serious about imbedding technology in all of its operations, opening up government to the people who pay for it.

• A 21st Century Workforce. For Memphis to win in the race for economic prosperity, it needs smart and skilled workers producing goods and services characterized by innovation, knowledge and quality. If we are content to compete in the global economy by offering cheap wages, cheap land and cheap taxes, we are fighting for the bottom rungs of the economy. What’s needed is a team of public and private sector partners dedicated to building the skills needed for quality knowledge-based jobs, providing lifelong learning opportunities, improving the competitiveness of all workers and employers, connecting workforce development to economic needs and building a stronger education pipeline to produce skilled workers in the global economy.

• Competition on a Global Scale. To succeed, Memphis needs to develop cooperative networks and more sophisticated strategies for the global marketplace. Too often, international business is treated as an extension of traditional domestic economic development, and as a result, we often fail. Memphis needs a strategic plan of action tailored for the new world marketplace, and this includes helping business clusters gain access to global markets, finding opportunities for trade, investment and international partnerships and lobbying for federal policies that protect workers at high-risk for dislocation.

• Developing a Powerful Brand. Cities are no different from business. They need an authentic brand that tells the world who they are and what they stand for. Memphis needs a powerful brand, and it is not a slogan or a bumper sticker. A “real” city brand tells the rest of the country what we singularly stand for. That said, it's not about telling our story better; it's about creating a better story to tell.

• High-Quality Eco-Assets. Green assets are key to compete successfully for the workers we need for the Knowledge Economy. Preserved and protected open spaces, safe and attractive public spaces, better quality public sphere, greenbelts, clean air and water and outdoor recreation are not just wonderful public assets. More precisely, they are competitive advantages. Sustainable Shelby must be fully implemented, but it is only a start.

• A Reputation for Tolerance. Today, new workers are recruited just as often from India as Indiana. Memphis is competing as much with the country of Georgia as the state of Georgia. In order to compete, Memphis must have a well-founded reputation for tolerance and respect for various cultures, races and religions. Cities known for their low levels of tolerance will also become known for their low levels of economic growth, as we are proving already.

These are a few things that come to mind, but we suspect you have some of your own. If you do, please post them here.