A few things to know this week: October 8th, 2021
Gannett and the Death of Local Newspapers
Life in a small town has a lot of charm to it. There are numerous reasons why people choose a small town to raise their families, start their business, or make a home. One of the important elements that isn't appreciated or recognized adequately - until it is gone - is the role a small town local newspaper plays in community life. This piece from The Atlantic showcases real-world examples from the Midwest and highlights how the nature of small town news changes when local newspapers are absorbed by larger news companies. One of the most impactful quotes from the article is this one: "These stories are the connective tissue of a community; they introduce people to their neighbors, and they encourage readers to listen to and empathize with one another. When that tissue disintegrates, something vital rots away. We don’t often stop to ponder the way that a newspaper’s collapse makes people feel: less connected, more alone. As local news crumbles, so does our tether to one another."
-AJ
67% of Cities Plan to Use ARPA for Lost Revenue
Spending vs investing. It's a concept we all understand in our personal lives (or should!), but when it comes to cities, there's huge opportunity for improvement. A new report from the National League of Cities found that 67% of cities planned to spend their ARPA money to replace lost revenues instead of investing in improvements in infrastructure and other areas that would have a more lasting impact. This is shortsighted and fiscally irresponsible, in my opinion. This is something our team discusses when consulting with city leaders about closing their resource gaps and building more financially resilient communities. I understand the pandemic put many cities in a tight spot financially and has been forcing some difficult decisions about cutting and deferring services, but if we're being honest, most of our cities were already resource constrained and facing mounting infrastructure replacement liabilities before COVID-19 showed up. The federal money from ARPA and the forthcoming infrastructure bill present an excellent opportunity to evaluate why your city is so tight on resources to begin with (hint: your development pattern might be partially to blame) and then utilize data and community input to identify strategic ways to invest these funds so that they address the most pressing current needs but also change things in a meaningful way that closes resource gaps over time instead of just punting liabilities down the road to future elected officials and tax payers. It's not too late to change your approach to ARPA from a spending mindset to an investing mindset!
-Kevin
The House that Came in the Mail
99% Invisible is rerunning one of my favorite episodes this week. Kit homes are a phenomenon that I wish would make a large comeback. It feels like building your own home with a set of instructions and some precut lumber might be the only way young people might be able to own a home at this point. But this episode covers lots of interesting aspects of the history of kit homes and it even includes a segment at the end which covers adaptive resume of some of the large search urban Sears warehouses scattered around the country.
-Marshall
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Hey, friends in local government:
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