Develop Arts Downtown -- $52K Advice for Free

Mrs. Madville Times and I have previously and extensively discussed the importance of incorporating the arts into any plan for local economic revitalization. We've even compiled a list of resources showing that the arts aren't just pretty but profitable.

Of course, some politicians and other chamber-of-commerce types just won't get the message until they spend money on some outside expert to tell them this. Consider Rapid City, which just spent $52,000 to have Roger Brooks, a consultant from Seattle, come tell them the same thing Mrs. Madville Times and I have been telling Madison for free:

“Bring downtown to life!”

That was the advice of Roger Brooks, who has been hired to develop a new “brand” for Rapid City. Brooks spoke to a large crowd at the Best Western Ramkota Hotel Monday night in his second appearance in Rapid City.

He implored the crowd to work together to create a vibrant downtown filled with art, entertainment venues, restaurants and bars. Businesses must stay open later and the downtown area has to be an inviting place for people to spend time and money.
“You’ve got to make it a hub of activity for Rapid City,” Brooks said.

He proposed building a fountain in downtown, perhaps in a plaza area, to encourage more people to come to Rapid City. “People want gathering places,” he said. “Water attracts like no other lure. You need to do something that is spectacular" [Tom Lawrence, "Tourism Expert: 'Bring Downtown to Life,'" Rapid City Weekly News, 2008.01.08].

A fountain -- remind me to add that to the list of renovations for the Mason's building...

What I find hilarious in this is that some of the Rapid City chamber-types admit that they spent $52,000 to hear what they already knew:

City of Presidents founder Don Perdue said he didn’t learn much from Brooks. “It’s nothing we don’t know about,” Perdue said. “But sometimes you need a teacher to tell you about what you need to do.”...

[Executive director of the Rapid City Convention and Visitors Bureau, Michelle] Lintz and others at the meeting said they had heard similar ideas in the past. The difference this time will be to make it happen [Lawrence].

Um, if I spend $52,000 -- if I spend any money -- I expect to hear something I haven't heard before. Again, we see a victory of marketing (by Roger Brooks, the (self-proclaimed?) "Dr. Phil of Tourism") over hometown common sense. Lintz herself says at the end of Lawrence's report that good ideas for local economic revitalization must "start from the bottom with community residents who really care."

We know, Michelle. We know.

So, community boosters everywhere, save yourselves thousands of dollars: read the Madville Times and Prairie Roots!

P.S.: Last April Mrs. Madville Times recommended the Madison Chamber put up some signage to let visitors know where the visitor center was. Roger Brooks loves signage too. Roger Brooks: $52,000 a pop. My wife's good advice: free. Dwaine tells us the signs are coming... by the end of 2008.