Dayton’s low self-esteem

Why does Dayton OH always focus on what we used to be, not what we will be? Why can’t we let go of the Wright Brothers, Flight and John Patterson- and look to tomorrow? These posts focus on ways to move forward- and gain some civic pride

4

Invented in Dayton: Rob Lowe

by David Esrati on May 28, 2011

in Dayton's low self-esteem

While Kevin Bacon made the concept of 6 degrees of separation famous, Dayton should be famous for 1.2 degrees of separation- in my time in Dayton, I’ve criss-crossed with Rob Lowe a few different ways, never actually meeting him- but I have talked to him on the phone once. His father was the first attorney [...]

17

The Yellow Bike test balloon

by David Esrati on May 22, 2011

in Bike Share in Dayton Ohio, Dayton's low self-esteem

Several years ago I proposed that Dayton join Denver in being one of the first to roll out the BCycle bike share system. It would have been about a $2 million investment, and would have put Dayton on the map in the news cycle as a major player and forward thinker in bik- sharing systems. [...]

21

Why Dayton needs to stop acting like a city in decline

by David Esrati on May 11, 2011

in Backassward Ohio, Dayton Regionalism, Dayton's low self-esteem

Last night, I had the honor of attending the Dayton Public Schools Superintendent’s Scholars ceremony for kids getting straight A’s (yep- one of the Esrati household is brighter than most). There, we got to hear and later meet an exceptional student from Thurgood Marshall High School- Ashley Cooper. Ms. Cooper has a 4.1 gpa, is [...]

1

Dayton Business Journal likes my comments

by David Esrati on December 4, 2010

in Dayton's low self-esteem, Stories you don't see in the Dayton Daily News, The Dayton Daily News isn't your friend

In a kind of bogus way, the Dayton Business Journal has taken its “readers comments” and used them anonymously, even though Disqus has the full name. Last two weeks- they’ve featured my comments- without giving credit: Dayton faces $5M in cuts for 2011 budget (Nov. 15) • Hmm, you’re losing customers, cut services, raise prices [...]

76

Dayton Public Schools and the state report card

by David Esrati on September 14, 2010

in Dayton Public Schools, Dayton's low self-esteem, The Dayton Daily News isn't your friend

If I ran a dating site and described each member by height, weight, and eye color and nothing else, how many people do you think would be happy about their dates? The state report card has become the metric for measuring schools of late- leaving out all the nuances that make up a school or [...]

12

A Dayton Daily News boycott?

by David Esrati on September 2, 2010

in Dayton's low self-esteem, The Dayton Daily News isn't your friend

Yesterday I heard it three times- “I’m boycotting the Dayton Daily News” – I don’t want to read their site, I don’t want to support their advertisers, I don’t want to talk to them- especially the editorial board. This wasn’t in a crowd of my usual suspects- it was at the Dayton Regional Summit, hosted [...]

2

How a connected neighborhood works

by David Esrati on August 27, 2010

in big ideas for Dayton OH, Dayton's low self-esteem, guide to living in Dayton

One of the reasons South Park works as a neighborhood is that we know and trust our neighbors. When my mother wanted recommendations for a tree service to cut down the almost dead tree behind their house we asked our neighborhood webmaster, Robert, to send a request for referrals to our neighborhood mail list. We [...]

13

Dayton gets national press for wrong thing (again)

by David Esrati on July 26, 2010

in big ideas for Dayton OH, Dayton's low self-esteem, Economic Development in Dayton OH

Over 20 years ago I was sitting on a dive boat with some people from NYC. I was telling them about my house I bought for $14,500- “$14,500? That’s what I pay a year for my parking spot” said one. “Did it come on a trailer” asked another. I went on to describe my 2-story, [...]

16

Let’s be original: the “Creative Class” reset

by David Esrati on March 6, 2010

in Dayton's future, Dayton's low self-esteem, Economic Development in Dayton OH

It seems we’ve been snookered. Richard Florida of “The Rise of the Creative Class” fame, is now back-pedaling hard on his theory that places could be saved by being more tolerant (coupled with technology and talent). Just focus on the gay geeks and all your troubles will go away was his tune, and DaytonCreate was [...]

1

Why neighborhood presidents are more important than a mayor

by David Esrati on January 3, 2010

in big ideas for Dayton OH, Dayton's future, Dayton's low self-esteem

Tomorrow we swear in a neighborhood president as mayor of Dayton. In terms of his ability to effect change in his area of responsibility, he’ll find he just took a demotion. Now, he’ll have to get two of four people to agree with him- and their constituencies- which include a myriad of political backers with [...]

← Previous Entries