There has been plenty of talk about Downtown Dayton's economic revival. Breweries, restaurants and the arts have brought suburbanites downtown for Saturday evening entertainment. Historic housing is seeing an uptick in young professionals longing for homes with character, as well as new construction filling the gaps between urban renters and homeowners. Start-ups are looking for space and connectivity via co-working environments.
A tougher fix lies in spaces like the once-thriving Arcade, languishing in a kind of historic purgatory, waiting for the big investment and the right big idea. Couple this with economic complacency, evident since the departure of General Motors and NCR, and you've got a "smoldering platform". Dayton's not on fire, but the right conditions could burn it down. Businesses that are part of the current revival are doing their part to quell the firestorm, but a sustainable solution is necessary to build a fireproof platform.
So what could move Dayton away from economic complacency and towards innovative resurgence?
Click here to read the entire article (originally published on linkedin, January 17, 2017).