It's NOT so such about the economy.
Rather, it is more about the physical and social aesthetics of a place. Such is what the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and Gallup report in the recently released "Knight Soul of the Community 2010," a study about why people love where they live and why it matters.
- The gallery at Arts on Union
Jobs, the economy and safety are NOT the top factors. In fact, higher ratings go to "elements that relate directly to their daily quality of life." These include: physical beauty, opportunities for socializing and the openness of a community to all people.
This, friends, is interesting stuff. Policy makers continue to place priority on JES (jobs, economy, safety) and, according to this study, residents are looking at things a different way. JES matters, of course, it just doesn't rank as high as the issues of physical and social aesthetics because if you don't have the aesthetics, you don't have the JES.
"Over the last three years, the Soul of the Community study has found a positive correlation between community attachment and local GDP growth ... This is a key metric in assessing community success because local GDP growth not only measures a community's economic success, but also its ability to grow and meet residents' needs," the report states.
I take this information as evidence of a shift from "build it and they will come" to "clean it up, liven it up and they will come" and I think this adjustment toward aesthetics is especially important to post-industrial places, such as Pennsylvania.
What do you think?
3 comments:
Christine,
You are so right about the "shift" it is happening everywhere. I think you said it right, "clean it up, liven it up and they will come"
There is no place like home!
I think a lot of what you say is quite valid. Once the community has a strong foundation and builds upon itself, there is internal growth and sustainability from that. It is amazing what has happened with a lot of Philly neighborhoods from the presence of a lot of strong commmunities and neighborhoods.
Thanks for your comments, folks.
I was so glad to see this study because, for me, it verified what I have seen and felt for quite some time now.
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