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Monterey County, CA November 7, 2006 Election
Smart Voter

Salinas as a Center of Culture

By Dennis Donohue

Candidate for Mayor; City of Salinas

This information is provided by the candidate
The cultural core--the "heart" of the city
Community safety and economic growth are fundamental to the health of any city. But there is a third element that is equally important: the cultural core--the "heart" of the city--which gives meaning and purpose to everything else. Rome did not fall because of barbarian invaders. Rome fell because its culture declined, and the city lost the collective energy that had fueled its greatness.

The city must provide a center of culture, artistic and spiritual. If we work only for security and wealth, something very important remains missing, and that absence affects all aspects of our lives.

Salinas already has a very strong heart--I know, I've lived here all my life. I know this city's heart, and I love this city's heart. But we can do more to nurture it. And if we do, we will reap both material and intangible rewards.

Local Experience
The Example Of The Libraries
The truth of this was driven home for me when I co-led Rally Salinas and the Measure V campaign. Even in the face of our other serious problems, the potential loss of our public libraries loomed as an unacceptable threat to the fabric of our city, and we came together to prevent it. The people of Salinas showed the power of culture to motivate action.

Libraries are not a luxury; they are an essential public resource. I agree with a recent report by the Americans for Libraries Council, that "libraries are poised to lead the way to solutions to today's pressing community problems, including providing a safe and engaging place for teens; building a strong and literate workforce; and extending access to technology."

Revitalization And Sustenance
I would also point to the difference made by the cultural component of the revitalization of Oldtown, including projects as grand as the National Steinbeck Center and as neighborhood-focused as Rollick's Café or the First Fridays Art Walks.

We can see the positive effects of nurturing culture elsewhere in the city as well: at the Rodeo Grounds and the Sherwood Community Center, at new schools, and in the churches and temples that have sustained us throughout our history.

I believe that the difficulties we face now call on us to invest more in culture, not less, because the rewards will so far outweigh the investment. As is so often the case, the city cannot handle such investments on its own. But the city, community and businesses, working together, can.

Art and Culture: The Hard-Nosed Business Case
Successful companies like IBM and successful regions like Silicon Valley know that investing in pure research pays off, even when the direct commercial application of that research may not be clear. Investing in art and culture also pays off, despite the popular cliché of the starving artist with head in the clouds.

The fact is that vibrant creative communities also create more vibrant economies. There are several reasons why:
  • Cultural excitement attracts and retains the most intelligent and productive young people.
  • It supports related businesses, such as art galleries, printers and artist supply stores.
  • Visitors drawn to galleries, theaters, nightclubs, book stores and events also patronize other local businesses.
  • The value of real estate in culturally vital neighborhoods tends to rise (although this is balanced against the affordability cost of gentrification).
  • Creative people tend to come up with lots of new ideas. So I am a strong supporter of our libraries, the Steinbeck Center, the new Maya Cinema, the First Fridays Art Walks, the Western Stage and more. Apart from the internal value we each derive from it, a vital cultural scene is just good business.

    Let me note that this does not mean I'm a proponent of shallow attempts to graft a surface layer of "cool" onto Salinas, an approach (perhaps unfairly) associated with Richard Florida and his book The Rise Of The Creative Class. I favor more substantial and more broad-based efforts, such as those successfully pursued in Nashville and in Cincinnati. As writer James Schroder puts it in an article in The Next American City:

    City officials have recognized that continued development in the center city depends heavily on its ability to attract a wide range--not just one type--of residents and visitors. According to City Council Member John Cranley, "...we're not targeting anyone--young professionals, empty nesters, or the `creative class.'" In downtown Cincinnati, he says, "we're creating a great product."

Multiculturalism
There was a time when cities tended to be homogeneous: one church, one set of cultural traditions. This has never been the case in Salinas, and we are the stronger for it. Our diversity of traditions--Anglo, Latino, African-American, Japanese, Chinese, Filipino, Greek, Italian and more--makes us a mutli-cultural powerhouse.

Although we have a history of multiculturalism, in the past the Anglo community dominated business and politics. But as access to those domains has become more diverse, we have all discovered that cultural diversity is not just fairer, it's better for business. In economic terms, cultural diversity seems to be analogous to diversification in investments: It leads to stronger, more predictable growth.

The most successful American corporations have long since learned this lesson. Even if all the regulations regarding fair hiring practices were removed, no rational corporate board would advocate a return to the old days of dominance by one group or gender, if for no other reason than because the dollars-and-cents cost to the company would be too great. To cite one of many examples, surveys by the Center For Responsibility In Business of the "Best Companies For Minorities" consistently feature many of the most successful companies in the country, including McDonald's, SBC, Lucent, Xerox and Hilton Hotels. On the global scale, an important reason why the economies of modern democracies outperform those of other political systems is this: societies based on equality of opportunity don't "throw away" the potential contributions of large segments of their populations.

I often say that I want to be the "Mayor for all of Salinas". In part that's because it's an article of faith with me that we are all created equal and deserve equal opportunity. In part it's because I have friends in all the city's communities, and I don't want to see any of my friends get a raw deal. But it's also because I believe that inclusiveness leads to stronger economic growth for all of us.

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ca/mnt Created from information supplied by the candidate: October 15, 2006 17:45
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