For Michigan to turn around, communities must recognize the importance of arts and culture, vibrant downtowns, entertainment, universities, modern transit, parks and trails, support services for entrepreneurs and innovators, safe places and a culture of tolerance.
John Warbach, Associate Director of the Land Policy Institute (LPI) at MSU, says that recognition is all part of making Michigan communities great places to work and live.
To foster such attitudes and connect people who have the best ideas on new ways to think about Michigan a new website has been launched --
GreatPlaceNetwork.org.
Organizers of the Great Place Network have launched the site to bring together innovative people who create jobs, economic developers, regional and state policy makers, Michigan State University experts and the general public, including those in Southwest Michigan.
On the site will be information on placemaking efforts, policy and strategy and information on best practices being used across the state.
"Michigan has too many things going for it to write it off," Warbach says. "It has the bones in its metro regions. It has abundant natural resources. It has creative people and universities. Many places that had previously suffered dramatic economic decline -- Boston, Chicago, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia -- have reinvented themselves as vibrant and thriving places. Young people flock to those cities."
On the website, those who join can use the platform to discuss specific strategies for their region. They also can learn about great places in Michigan and cutting-edge research. Credible information from MSUE and MSU Land Policy Institute experts will be available. They also can learn about and publicize regional and statewide events and make connections through groups and profiles.
The Great Place Network is a joint effort between MSU Extension, the MSU Land Policy Institute and the Michigan Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth.
Writer: Kathy Jennings
Source: John Warbach, Land Policy Institute
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