Adapt or lose out, network chief says

300 in NLR told to keep changing

Cities must be able to adapt or be left behind in this fast-changing world, the head of a national “innovation network” told more than 300 governmental, civic and business leaders Wednesday at the Argenta Downtown Council’s annual luncheon in North Little Rock.

“We have to start anticipating a whole new world,” Lee Fisher, the president of CEO for Cities, a national network of urban leaders that works to help cities improve livability and be more economically competitive.

Fisher recited statistics from national studies that show how keeping up really means staying ahead of the game.

“It’s said that between every Monday and Wednesday, in 48 hours, as much information is generated as there was generated from the dawn of time to 2003,” said Fisher, a former Ohio lieutenant governor and attorney general. “[The year] 2005 was the old days.”

There should be no such thing as “a 10-year plan or a 15-year plan,” Fisher said, adding that if leaders aren’t changing their cities’ plans faster than that their cities will fall behind and lose the ability to attract and retain younger residents. As a result, cities will also lessen their future economic growth.

“It’s time for all of us to look at our cities as if they were a startup,” Fisher told the group.

With 63 percent of all jobs in 2018 expected to require some form of college education, Fisher said, citing research statistics, cities should focus on attracting those with two- or four-year degrees. A city should also look to persuade the 21-to-35-year age group to either stay in the city or move to it to ensure a stable community in the future.

“By their 35th birthday, they stay where they are. They settle down,” Fisher said.

Economic growth can also rely on only a few relatively small changes, he said. Along with increasing the number of residents with two- or four year degrees by 1 percentage point, cities could make a difference by reducing vehicle miles traveled by one mile per person per day and by reducing poverty rates by one percentage point.

“We all want to do our part in changing the world,” Fisher said. “But we know we’re only a little patch of the world. It’s a daunting task.

“If you want to change the world, you start in one place,” he added. “In particular, you start with your city.

“We do spend too much time waiting on Washington,” he said.

The Argenta Downtown Council’s annual luncheon is the group’s major fundraiser for the year. Among the council’s responsibilities are maintaining the numerous flower beds in North Little Rock’s downtown Argenta area and the marketing and advertising of merchants and properties within the Argenta Arts District in downtown.

All proceeds from the luncheon are to fund projects of the downtown council, founded in December 2007.

Arkansas, Pages 10 on 06/13/2013

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