Utopia

When I lived in the high-end suburbs of Chicago, cocktail conversation usually revolved around money and politics with 90% of it being Republican politics. Democrat was a dirty word because it represented the dysfunctional thug politics found in Chicago...just 35 miles away. Everyone did charity work, were involved in school activities, went to church and joined social organizations or clubs. It was a very close, interpersonal community relationship with grievances usually taken care of quickly and efficiently...mostly to everyone's satisfaction. Government was rarely involved in our lives. They made sure we were safe and had adequate infrastructure, petty politics was involved among a select few who I personally think enjoyed that kind of thing.

When it was time to revitalize our historic downtown district, people rolled up their sleeves and got to work. The 100+ year old Chamber of Commerce worked with the local city government on an economic development plan and put it into action. We all got on committees and put our different skillsets to work. It was poetry in motion...it got done.

Major projects like a downtown parking garage and high-end condo development on top of it provided the much needed pedestrian traffic to incentize new retail establishments to invest in renovating the old vacant storefronts. We had an architectural review board and vision plan in place so that new merchants were on the same page as we were when they made their decision to come onboard.

Our historic downtown, once old and worn (and vacant) just a few years earlier became the thriving, charming hometown where families walked the sidewalks to ice cream shops, young people had their choice of parks, sweets and coffee shops, retail shops sprung up with destination quality products, restaurants became destination quality too. We had car shows on Friday nights, music on the square, our historic movie theatre was saved from the wrecking ball, a new train station was built, our library expanded.

The funny thing was...we just had the vision, everything else happened because we had a plan. The best part about all this "change"? The government didn't do it, we did it, the private sector. The local government just got out of the way and enabled and encouraged it to happen. They were partners in the process.

So when people tell me I live in a fantasy land because I think that same process could happen here in Monteagle...I just shake my head and smile. Being a true Republican means never having to say you are sorry. We just get the job done.