Culture | Page 5 | Your Delray Boca

17 March, 2016 3 3 Comments

Building a Front Row Culture

March 17, 2016 By Jeff Perlman 3 Comments

Seth Godin rocks

I’m a huge fan of the author/blogger Seth Godin.

Not only does he write amazing books (“Purple Cow”, “Linchpin” etc.) he blogs every single day. And most days, he hits it out of the park. That’s just remarkable.

Last week, he floored me with his blog entitled “Front Row Culture.” Here it is…

“The group files into the theater, buzzing. People hustle to get to the front row, sitting side by side, no empty seats. The event starts on time, the excitement is palpable.

The other group wanders in. The front row is empty and stays that way. There are two or even three empty seats between each individual. The room is sort of dead.

In both cases, the CEO or the guest speaker is going to address the group for an hour. But the two groups couldn’t be more different.

The first organization sees possibility; the second sees risk and threat. The first group is eager to explore a new future; the second group misses the distant past.

The truth is this: it’s possible to hire for, train for and lead a front-row organization. And if you merely let entropy take over, you’re going to end up with the second, lesser, failing organization instead.

Worth saying this as clearly as possible: The culture, the choice of front row or back row, is a choice. It’s the result of investment and effort.

Where would you rather work?”

I read that blog at least five times. And then I thought, not only is this thinking applicable to businesses but it applies to cities as well.

“Where would you rather work”, can easily be replaced with where would you rather live?

For me, the difference between a “Front Row” culture and lethargy is the difference between aspiration and fear.

I’m attracted to communities that aspire.

I’m attracted to cities that have vision.

I like places that are willing to experiment and open to new ideas.

I think the cities that work are those that emphasize outcomes over process. Sure, you need rules, ethics, bidding and procedures but those procedures ought to facilitate outcomes, not hinder progress or change. We can nitpick or we can progress.

It shouldn’t take 20 attempts to issue an RFP and it shouldn’t take years to approve a project. You ought to be able to get a fence permit fast and you ought to be able to grab an attractive investment and entitle it quickly so you can be ready for the next one.

Front row cultures empower residents, business owners and public servants. Places that aspire enable and encourage people to solve problems and chase dreams.

The focus needs to be on creating opportunities for current and future residents—you always have to be focused on the future.

“What’s next”? is always the key question.

Complacency is a killer. Aspiration and possibility trumps fear and dysfunction and creates quality of life and place.

1 March, 2016 0 Comments

Zingerman’s Laws Applied To Cities

March 1, 2016 By Jeff Perlman Leave a Comment

Zingerman’s Deli in Ann Arbor is legendary.

Have you ever been to Zingerman’s in Ann Arbor, Michigan?

If you have to think about it, most likely you haven’t been because Zingerman’s is unforgettable.

The type of business that is so good they have made fans worldwide and inspired people from all walks of life to make the journey to Michigan to experience the magic. They also offer classes and books for entrepreneurs that want to learn how to do it right.

Last week, Zingerman’s released their “12 Natural Laws of Business Success”. We share and add some commentary as it relates to cities.

ZINGERMAN’S 12 NATURAL LAWS OF BUSINESS

LAW #1 : An inspiring, strategically sound vision leads the way to greatness (especially if you write it down!)

Amen. Having a sound vision is the best economic development and community spirit builder you can possibly design. Delray’s vision has been legendary, but sadly absent in recent years. Boca’s vision is different than Delray’s but equally compelling. Every city is different, but every city that wants to be great needs to have a vision, shared and developed by stakeholders. That’s all those who have a stake and don’t forget to give voice to all, especially youth and people who need some help.

LAW #2 : You need to give customers really compelling reasons to buy from you.

In retrospect, this one is practically self-evident! And most successful businesses do this anyway. We think it takes on special super-powers if you have it top of mind. If you mindfully articulate the “compelling reasons to buy” for every product you put out there and then, you intentionally work every day on adding to that list – you’re pretty much sure to be on the path to success!

City Corollary: Homeowners, tourists and business owner have an almost infinite number of choices. In order for them to choose your city you need to give them compelling reasons, commonly known as amenities, activities, quality of life, quality of place and quality services.

LAW #3 : Without good finance, you fail.

Speaking of self-evident, this one is so obvious it almost didn’t make it on the list. It’s here because it’s really not a great idea to assume that the obvious is obvious to everyone. It also made it to the list because we recognize that people are driven by different passions, and assuming that if you’re passionate about what you do then the money will take care of itself is not a great idea. Neither is thinking of money as a necessary evil. You’ve got to pay attention to the money for its own sake.

City Corollary: It’s the public’s money, so spend wisely and efficiently and on the big stuff make sure you have buy-in. The major spending in Delray was done via visioning, serious efforts at input and referenda.

LAW #4 : People do their best work when they’re part of a really great organization.

Remember that job you had (and hopefully still have!) that you totally loved? You jumped out of bed each morning eager to get to work. You brought your best self to work. You loved the work you did and you did what it takes to be darn good at it. You loved what your business did. You were fond of your co-workers and you all made a rocking team. Your boss thought you were the bees knees. Yep. That’s what we’re talking about. If you strive to create that kind of workplace every day, you’ll most likely also have a really successful one.

City Corollary: It’s all about the team and community building. Worth the effort, because you can’t achieve if this ingredient is missing.

LAW #5 : If you want the staff to give great service to customers, the leaders have to give great service to the staff.

Hmm, you might be thinking. Did I read that backwards? You didn’t. But it is kind of backwards from the way most of the world works. Which is also what most people say about Servant Leadership, which is the leadership philosophy that we follow here at Zingerman’s and which this law reflects. The truth is, the service that the staff gives to customers is almost never going to be better than the service that they’re getting from the organization, particularly the leaders of the organization. The leaders set the bar for service – what the leaders model to the staff could set that bar real high or it could define what the lowest acceptable level of service is. Or something in between. You choose.

City Corollary: Elected officials need to rely on their staff to achieve their goals. Accountability is essential, but you cannot micromanage. Support your staff, if you can’t support your staff you have the wrong staff.

LAW #6 : If you want great performance from your staff, you have to give them clear expectations and training tools.

In the book, “First, Break All the Rules,” by Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman, they cite a survey conducted by the Gallup Organization. Gallup asked 1,000,000 workers and 80,000 managers (right?) about the factors that are the most important for keeping the best workers in their jobs for the longest period of time. Guess what the top 2 were : Clear expectations and, the tools to do their work. Hence this law. At Zingerman’s we keep this in the forefront by making sure that we use the Zingerman’s Training Compact and 4 Training Plan Questions for all the internal (and external!) training that we do.

City Corollary: Give clear direction to your staff and also give them the resources to the job. Then get out of the way, trust but verify though.

LAW #7 : Successful businesses do the things that others know they should do …. but generally don’t.

You’ve probably read a business article (or 5!) about L.L. Bean’s remarkably lenient returns policy. They now have decades of data supporting the fact that it’s a great idea for their business. Why hasn’t every single clothing retailer in the country hasn’t adopted the idea? Because it’s hard work. It’s staff training, customer training, tracking systems, extra accounting and a couple of things we’re not thinking of. And yet, it’s a great idea that generates incredible customer loyalty and (to quote the article above) “As a business practice, it’s expensive. As advertising, it’s cheap.” Having and adopting ideas like this, ideas that take us towards greatness, is exactly what differentiates successful businesses from those that are not.

City Corollary: Great cities provide outstanding services, don’t get bogged down in process and concentrate on outcomes that create value for their citizens/customers.

Law #8: To get to greatness you’ve got to keep getting better, all the time!

You’ve heard this one in a million different ways. There is no standing still, you’re either going forward or you’re falling back. Continuous Improvement. Kaizen. And so on. The important thing to note about this law is that it applies to everything. Any business or activity or pursuit for that matter. But also any aspect of a business. Products. Processes. Systems. Measures. People. They’ve all got to keep getting better, all the time!

City Corollary: Complacency is a killer, once you stop aspiring you expire.

LAW #9 : Success means you get better problems.

This one is a bit of a mind bend until you accept it. But as soon as you have, it becomes a belated glimpse of the obvious! If I asked you whether you can imagine a world/time/place that is free of all problems, you’d laugh at me, right? And yet, each of us, at least secretly, believes that when we get to that next stage, meet that next goal, life will become magically problem free. The truth is, you’ll just have different problems, and if the next stage or goal is getting you better problems, call it a win! Example : You obsess about customer service and are nationally recognized for it. Good Problem : You have lines out of the door and are getting customer complaints for the wait time. Less Good Problem : You don’t obsess about customer service, you have no lines and no one complains about the wait.

City Corollary: Love this one. Success means you get better problems—like parking, traffic, etc. Is traffic pleasant? Nope. But it sure beats no traffic on your main street.

LAW #10 : Whatever your strengths are, they will likely lead straight into your weaknesses.

Another way to think of this one is – “Get off the see-saw”. Getting off the see-saw brings better perspective to many, many situations but is particularly effective when you are evaluating your organization/team/business, or even yourself. Thinking of attributes in terms of good/bad or desirable/undesirable misses the complexity of the world in which we operate. A different time, place or situation is all it takes for a strength to be a weakness and vice versa. Example : Being a very participative workplace. Strength : Employee engagement. Weakness : Decision making can take longer.

City Corollary: Get off the dais, don’t keep your own counsel (you are not the smartest person in the room) and don’t surround yourself with people who think alike.

LAW #11 : It generally takes a lot longer to make something great happen than people think.

Speaking of taking longer, greatness takes a long time. And a lot of persistence. Those stories of overnight, magical success that the media loves to feature? Dig a little deeper and there’s always more. More work. More preparation. More time. More investment. More practice. But if you embark on something, with the recognition that greatness will take a while, it will make you more likely to stick with it and get to greatness. And if you find smaller, meaningful victories to celebrate along the way, all the better!

City Corollary: Celebrate your successes, build momentum and stick with the vision, especially when it’s challenged and it is always challenged.

LAW #12 : Great organizations are appreciative, and the people in them have more fun.

We could have the chicken and egg conversation here. Are people having fun and being appreciative because the organization is great? Or is it the other way around? While that will be a fun (See what I did there?) debate to have, the truth is that it doesn’t actually matter. What’s clear is that it’s a nice self -fulfilling cycle. So, why not go after creating a fun, appreciative workplace and see what happens?

City Corollary: Culture eats strategies lunch. If you build community and a team you can move mountains. If you don’t you’re spinning your wheels and they will come off.

21 December, 2015 2 2 Comments

An Opportunity to Learn

December 21, 2015 By Jeff Perlman 2 Comments

Editor’s Note: This is our last blog of 2015, we are going to enjoy the holidays and take a break. We do want to wish our readers a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Safe New Year. We have enjoyed the conversation and look forward to more dialogue in 2016. But before we sign off, we want to wish our old friend Randal Krejcarek, Delray’s Environmental Services Director a fond farewell as he leaves for a terrific opportunity. Randal was always a class act, a talented professional and a pleasure to work with. He went above and beyond and he will be deeply missed. He’s just a great guy.

I had lived in Delray Beach for 13 years when I ran for the City Commission in 2000.

For a decade, my job was to cover city government, which meant I attended just about every City Commission meeting, CRA meeting, planning and zoning meeting, DDA meeting and community gathering that occurred.

I rode with cops and firefighters, was involved with the Chamber of Commerce, non-profits such as Old School Square and Pineapple Grove Main Street and served on the Sister Cities Committee. I knew just about every community leader from neighborhood association presidents and union bosses to city department heads and prominent local business leaders. I even knew a great many of the city’s most notorious criminals—and interviewed a few of them in prison.

When I left the paper around ’97, I started my own publications that covered schools, sports, crime and education and got know teachers, principals, School Board members, coaches, athletes, boosters and more cops , volunteers and criminals.

So I thought I knew a lot about Delray Beach when I got elected and I did, sort of.

But I also had gaps in my knowledge a mile wide and 10 miles deep.

I was a well-trained rookie, but I was still a rookie.

I remember an orientation meeting with then City Manager David Harden, where I was handed a copy of the City Charter, a thick budget book and a giant copy of the city’s land development regulations, comp plan and other documents. I barely made it back to the car. I had a similar meeting with then City Attorney Susan Ruby.

When you get elected you are expected to learn the following: municipal finance, land use law, labor relations, pensions, budgets, capital improvement plans, county/city relations, community development block grants, how debt works, municipal law, historic preservation, emergency management policies, municipal insurance and a whole lot more.

The formal education was just beginning—the informal one begins once you’re on the job and truthfully you never stop learning the nuances of leadership. That piece is ongoing with lessons earned and learned from every issue and interaction. It’s a remarkable experience.

Local government even has its own language: LDR’s, the difference between a waiver and a variance, conditional use, something called “smoothing” (a pension term) and my favorite: effluent flows (look it up) because a perk of the job is you also sit on the sewer board for Boynton Beach and Delray.

Some of it fascinated me. Some of it confused me. Some of it made me yawn and some of it was so cool that I wanted to learn as much as possible.

In my opinion, the two areas where city officials should spend their time and develop some chops are land use and budgeting.

Like in any business, cash flow, revenues, expenses, debt service and all that happy stuff is critically important. While you have a city manager, a few assistant city managers, outside auditors and a finance department you cannot be an effective elected official without an understanding of how you fund and charge for government services.

So you need learn to read and understand budgets, monthly financial analyses and year end reports.

I had managed newspaper budgets for a corporate parent and my own small publishing company so I had a basic understanding of finances. In fact, we were so lean I knew my cash position every moment of every day. I knew if I didn’t collect receivables in a timely fashion, those who worked with me wouldn’t be able to pay their bills.

As an elected official, you are in an oversight capacity, so the checkbook resides elsewhere but you learn quickly that you have a fiduciary responsibility and that 60,000 people and all the businesses in your town will come looking for you if things go wrong.

But my favorite part of my municipal education was in the land use arena; planning and redevelopment. I absolutely fell in love with it all—architecture, urban design, streetscapes and what it takes to create a successful downtown.

I read everything I could find—books, articles, magazines, the works of New Urbanist thought leaders –and began to look at cities differently when I travelled. The national Main Street program, Florida League of Cities, Urban Land Institute and American Planning Association were also sources I mined for information and insights.

Back in those days, we would travel to other cities for conferences and to glean ideas and learn from communities that had wrestled with similar challenges. More often than not, we’d take neighborhood leaders and city staff with us so we could learn together. We bonded during these trips which took us out of our everyday surroundings and exposed us to new ideas, approaches and ways to solve problems. We made friends across the country and talked up our city everywhere we went.

In short order, we were hosting groups in Delray to show them what we had done here—hits and misses, triumphs, defeats and lessons learned. It’s gratifying to share experiences with others on a similar path.

Over the years I have been visited by several people who aspire to be elected officials. They ask to meet for endorsements, campaign donations or to see if I would introduce them to people who might get them votes, more cash and endorsements.

I get it. It’s a necessary part of the process. But increasingly, I’m running into people who seem to be less interested in the subject matter and more interested in attaining the office. They seem sadly unaware of the opportunity to make a difference and more interested in personal power.

I pine for those aspirants who do more listening than talking; I observe whether they can stop long enough to seek information rather than just tell me how great and smart they are.

I look for people hungry to learn—who ask questions, who have done their homework about the community’s they seek to serve. How can you serve if you aren’t curious or willing to learn? How can you lead without first seeking to understand?

I run into a lot of people who think they are the smartest people in the room; regardless of which room they are in. I try to avoid them. They can’t learn, because if you are smarter than everyone else what can you learn?

I was uniquely prepared as a result of my newspaper job, but in hindsight, I knew very little. But I did know enough to ask questions and seek knowledge—that’s what reporters do. The better ones anyway.

How else do you learn? How else can you serve? How can you lead if you keep your own counsel?

The answer is you can’t.

12 November, 2015 0 Comments

Culture Eats Strategy for Lunch

November 12, 2015 By Jeff Perlman Leave a Comment

Compassionate communities produce a whole lot of this.

Last Saturday, we attended a wonderful event honoring Old School Square’s Joe Gillie on his retirement after 25 years of service to Delray.

It was a fun evening, full of love, joy and warmth. The kind of night that makes you realize The Beatles were right when they sang: “And in the end, the love you take, is equal to the love you make.”

Joe loved Old School Square and he loved Delray Beach. And in return, that love was returned by a group of people who also devoted a great many years of their lives to creating community—this community.

The “feel” of the evening was nothing short of magic. Everywhere you turned, you saw a local icon.

There was Lynda Hunter, the legendary children’s librarian who taught generations of Delray kids to love books and stories. There was Tom Lynch, one of Delray’s truly great mayors chatting with Tom McMurrian of Ocean Properties, a company that has helped put Delray on the map with its investments. I got to chat with Evelyn Dobson who has quietly changed lives for a decade at our Community Land Trust.

We saw Old School Square Chair Bill Branning, who has been a leader on our CRA and whose company built our library, the Milagro Center and the entertainment pavilion enjoyed by thousands every weekend.

The event attracted former CRA Chair Howard Ellingsworth, a local CPA who has given countless hours to preserving Delray’s history while also growing the community. Bob Currie was there too. He has been practicing architecture in Delray for 45 years and has left a stamp on downtown, Pineapple Grove, Old School Square, the library and more.

It was great to see our former Assistant City Manager Bob Barcinski, happily retired but still pitching in with this weekend’s Sister Cities Golf Tournament.

And of course, Frances Bourque who started it all, with a vision for Old School Square that brilliantly encapsulated the city’s past, present and future.

It was also heartening to see new faces as well. Connor Lynch, Tom’s son, who runs a large business in Delray, but finds time to serve on a slew of community boards while helping young entrepreneurs; Ryan Boylston who is so busy it’s exhausting to watch and Terra Spero, who was just recognized for her entrepreneurial talents by the Delray Chamber.

There was a magical feeling in the room as these people and many, many more gathered to thank Joe. And I realized– once again–how important gratitude and thankfulness is in places that seek to be communities.

It’s not easy following someone like Joe, who has a larger than life aura.

But this transition to new leadership seems to be a model for how to do it well. Rob Steele, the new CEO, is a smart, sensitive and seasoned executive who has welcomed Joe’s input and insight while taking the reins. Along with Artistic Director Matthew Farmer and COO Karen Richards, it seems that the organization will make a smooth transition; embracing the past while introducing new ideas.

After the event—not wanting to let go of that old Delray feeling—a bunch of us went to Da Da for a late night dinner. While walking to the restaurant with a friend, we talked about that intangible feeling that has made Delray Beach so special.

To be honest, that feeling is in peril. And in my mind, that’s worth a conversation and a lot of introspection.

Culture in communities is everything. In this case, we’re not talking about art, music and festivals, although those things are important too. We are talking about what it feels like to live here. Is this a supportive community? Do we respect each other? Are we inclusive of people and ideas? Do we put the community’s interests above egos and personal agendas? Are we nice to each other?

When Joe and Frances and many of the others mentioned above got started in Delray, we were a vastly different place; a start-up so to speak.

Start-ups are nimble, fun, exhausting, exciting and inspiring. Some crash and burn and others soar. Delray soared, probably beyond most of our imaginations.

So while walking on Swinton Avenue my friend asked whether it was possible to still maintain that warmth and excitement in a city that has grown larger and arguably more sophisticated.

It’s a question I’ve been thinking about for a long time now. And I lean toward yes—I believe it’s possible. In many ways, I think it’s imperative.

See the size of buildings never got me wound up—whether they are 48 feet or 54 feet—few can tell even if they are experts.

But the intangible feeling of community is what we should be focused on. And we’re not. We are not.

We’re too quick to condemn. Too quick to write off; too quick to label and too quick to pile on when we disagree.

A community that works is grateful, loving, supportive, respectful and takes pride in the past, present and future; especially if your past, present and future is as rich as Delray’s.

There’s a nagging feeling that we’re not in sync these days. That we have sprung loose from those very important moorings. So every week, we experience symptoms of that condition: we blame the (insert name of agency here) for—take your pick: being too successful, not being successful enough, having too much money, spending too much, spending too little, being out of touch etc. etc.

We criticize our (insert an institution here) for not being all it can be and forget to give credit for what it is; we critique festivals, criticize city staff, wring our hands about traffic and accomplish little.

That doesn’t mean accountability isn’t important or that our library, CRA or any other entity, group or project is perfect and can’t be better. It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t talk about growth and development or traffic. But the conversation has to transcend our own personal drive times and has to consider our financial future and the opportunities we are creating for future generations.

The people in the room last weekend thanking Joe Gillie for 25 years of leadership are pacesetters, civic entrepreneurs. They built a heck of a start-up. If cities were start-ups, we’d be Facebook, Apple or Google, a billion dollar plus unicorn.

Yes I’m proud of what’s been built. Is it perfect? Not on your life. Is it done? No way.

Is Delray Beach everybody’s cup of tea? Nope. Some people prefer Myspace to Facebook. But not many.

So to those saying the town has been ruined; I disagree. It’s been saved and it’s terrific. Not perfect and chock full of challenges– but still pretty terrific. Sorry, but we have nothing to apologize for and a lot to be proud of. To those who are concerned by change, I agree—to a point. I also know that change is inevitable. You can fight it, manage it, shape it, stamp you feet or hold your breath–but it’s going to happen.

But let’s talk about change intelligently.

“The opposite to bad development is good development, not no development,” said the architect Padriac Steinschneider. He was right. Let’s talk about design and placemaking; that somehow gets lost and it’s important.

But not most important. Most important is how we interact.

We have a lot of work to do.

We can start with culture. Let’s build a place where it’s safe to disagree and safe to innovate.

8 October, 2015 2 2 Comments

Thanks Joe

October 8, 2015 By Jeff Perlman 2 Comments

Mr. Debonair

Editor’s Note: Joe Gillie officially retired this week as President and CEO of Old School Square. A celebration of his legacy will be held Nov. 7 at Old School Square. To get tickets visit https://delraycenterforthearts.org/

I remember the first time I met Joe Gillie.

It was 25 years ago and he was a board member at Old School Square, which at the time was a fledgling experiment in a town trying desperately to change its narrative.

It was 1990 and Delray Beach was a very different place. In March, the city held a landmark election and elected a slate of candidates who promised to reform government, bring stability to City Hall and implement what was being called a “Decade of Excellence.”

The 80s had been a rough decade for Delray, also known as “Dullray” back then. The city had serious crime issues, the downtown had major vacancies and the crack cocaine epidemic had engulfed entire neighborhoods. But there were signs of hope all around. Visions 2000 brought people together, there were plans to reform schools, a new CRA was doing good things, historic districts were being established and the Decade of Excellence Bond passed with huge voter support, promising over $20 million in needed improvements and beautification.

A year later a visionary police chief was hired and a new chamber president too. It was a time of hope and promise and Old School Square was at the forefront of civic endeavors charged with being a catalyst for downtown revitalization.

Two years after I met Joe, he became President of Old School Square. By 1993, he was in charge of our first bid for an All America City Award and when I say he was in charge, he was in charge.

Joe managed every detail using his theatre background to craft a presentation that literally blew the judges in Tampa away. I recently found archival footage of that event and it was remarkable to see our diversity and spirit in action—and it was remarkable to see Joe’s leadership at its most impactful.

He incorporated young and old, black and white, east and west into a team. In baseball they call it clubhouse chemistry; that intangible that makes champions. Joe was the architect of that chemistry and the vehicle was the All America City Competition.

When you view the footage from that event, you see a young Mayor Tom Lynch, civic giants like C. Spencer Pompey, dedicated city staff like Lula Butler and Dorothy Ellington, residents like John Tallentire and Sandra Almy and you just marvel at the energy, spirit, humor and camaraderie. There was trust among neighbors, people loved their city and trusted their local government enough to go millions of dollars in debt in order to achieve a vision.

Old School Square itself was a big risk, and you can see in founder Frances Bourque’s eyes her trust and belief in a young Joe Gillie to pull off a vision that if successful would mark a huge turning point in the city’s rich history.

In hindsight, winning that first All America City Award was the propellant we needed as a community to tell the world that things in Delray were changing and we were serious about lifting up all parts of our community.

Joe Gillie was at the forefront of those efforts. He, along with many many others, helped to win two All America City Awards and we became the first city in Florida to do so.

But Joe was our captain. In Joe, we trusted. He kept this city focused, laughing and moving forward through good times and challenging times.

Joe was a different kind of leader. He wasn’t walled off in some office, he could be found in the trenches, usually with a broom in those early days, but always with a larger than life personality that greeted patrons, promoted shows, programs and classes and always talked up the larger goal which was building community through culture.

We hear, often, how people are replaceable. How no one person is larger than the mission or more important than the enterprise. Part of that old saw is true, except that people are not replaceable.

There will be people who serve as President of what is now called the Delray Center for the Arts and hopefully they will do a great job in the role. But there will never be another Joe Gillie. He’s an original; a Delray original by way of Virginia.

In August, I attended a surprise party for Joe at Smoke. It’s not easy to surprise Joe, but it happened. Many of his friends were there and it was a wonderful night, full of memories and laughs, but with Joe in the room there is always talk about the future.

Joe is departing from his role, but he’s not retiring. He’s a creative force and creative beings don’t stop inventing and innovating. He will act. He will sing. He will write. He will paint and he will continue to be a vibrant and positive force in our community.

During the party a loop of old photos ran on the wall in back of Smoke. Joe looking dapper in a tux. Joe with hair. Joe and me and Gary Eliopoulos dressed as rappers (Joe is the only guy who could get me to do that or to get Diane, my wife to sing Rodgers and Hammerstein songs with localized lyrics at a roast in front of 450 people). Joe made us believe. His time here was magical—pure magic. How lucky we have been.

13 April, 2015 8 8 Comments

Urban Myths: Delray Edition

April 13, 2015 By Jeff Perlman 8 Comments

Can this really happen? Or is it a myth?

Local urban myths

Nobody parks in the Old School Square Garage
The CRA hasn’t invested in the community.
All Developers Are Greedy and Bad
You Can Still Steal Real Estate in Delray (those days are gone)
Your million dollar plus house in east Delray has nothing to do with the success of the downtown
People don’t want to live downtown
All density is bad. (It’s about design)
48 feet is a tall building
The US 1 project will create gridlock
Conditional use is bad
Conditional use is the same as a waiver or variance
Suburban parking codes work downtown
Downtown is bullet proof (see Street, Clematis, Boulevard, Las Olas)
Downtown is done.
Cities can ignore private property rights (not in America)
Property owners can ignore the public (no they can’t and they shouldn’t)
Sprawl like development is sustainable
We can ignore millennials
Process trumps outcomes
Contracts shouldn’t be bid (a view still stubbornly held by a few)
The highest or lowest bidder should always win (better make sure they can do the job)
Economic development incentives are the answer (a tool: yes, the answer: no)
You don’t have to grow your own jobs
Parking is free
Culture doesn’t matter
Success is an accident
Visioning is a waste of time
Delray hasn’t implemented visions (just look around)
The squeaky wheel should always get the grease (it’s a big town out there, happy people tend not to show up at meetings, sadly)
Being an elected official is an easy job
Workforce housing is an option
Cities can ignore education
Success is always final and failure is always fatal
Public Art is a waste of resources
Cities should stick to the basics
Leadership is an option– nice to have but not necessary
Public Employees aren’t passionate about their mission
Elections don’t matter. Yes they do.