forum on the media and Youngstown's image this tuesday

so in prep for the event, was asked to give some thoughts on the matter.

assignment youngstown: tuesday, february 10th 7:30pm in YSU's Kilcawley Center.

a panel discussion on the 2008 election reporting on the working class and Youngstown.

featuring the following guests:
- Jonathan Kaufman, The Wall Street Journal
- Connie Schultz, The Plain Dealer
- Marilyn Geewax, National Public Radio

co-sponsored by the Center for Working Class Studies, the YSU journalism department, and the Youngstown Vindicator.

free parking at the deck at Lincoln and 5th avenue. free to attend.

- - -

Here is one response. The audience is every person who reads this post across the world.

Youngstown is your canvas, a laboratory of ideas.

One of the various themes emerging from stories by the national media in recent years is that Youngstown is a place willing to respect, and even accept innovative concepts. Perhaps the best example is the city's mention in the annual Year in Ideas edition of the New York Times Magazine, as Youngstown's urban planning “experiment has not gone unnoticed.”

While good press alone does not impact the quality of life for those in the Mahoning Valley, it definitely sparks the interest of others to examine life here. Almost weekly, I receive emails from people unknown to me who wish to become more engaged in this community, or hope to learn more about the people living here. In fact, in the next two years an interesting series of books, graduate school theses, and media projects will be released – all examining Youngstown.

Youngstown needs to be a place where authors, laborers, students, visitors, and janitors all feel welcome. A big tent, with plenty of space for those who just want to exist, and those who want to excel. So this place can become your place, and your canvas to create whatever you want.

A critical reality of Youngstown, unlike other portrayals in the national media, is that this region is not a monolith. Our hispters often fix their own automobiles, our steelworkers often participate in the arts, our drag queens are often the smartest people in the room, and our friends are way more extraordinary than what is seen at first glance.

And unless the media captures this diversity, they are missing the story.

a thirty-year katrina, but this storm is passing

Youngstown, it's not your fault.

It sounds like a line from a twelve-step rehab program, but it was a lesson I picked up from all the Black Monday segments spread throughout the local media this week.

Youngstown, it's not your fault.

Many newpapers all over the country ran a piece by Marilyn Geewax, native daughter of the Mahoning Valley and Economy and Technology Reporter for the Washington Bureau of Cox Newspapers. There was a part of her audio report which referenced the similarities between Hurricane Katrina and the Steel Collapse that began in Youngstown 30 years ago. According to her story, in both cases, these places were "abandoned by the institutions that could have helped" but instead endured.

And that's why the Youngstown story is just so damn interesting. It's a story of struggle and survival. It's a story of missteps and promises. It's a story of remembering the past and living for the future.

Youngstown, it's not your fault.



So now is the time to think about how we are still all in this together.

To realize we are a place and a people with no limits.

no limits.



no excuses, no saviors, no regret.

we are the people we've been waiting for.




In coordination with the editor of the Vindicator, a few local bloggers provided some pieces for reflection. These seven blogs are a sliver of the people that represent Team Youngstown.

Our continuing push is not limited to one generation, and is extended to the many many individuals who are a part of this community. Individuals who represent different groups, of older and younger generations.

This is all our fight.

Keep thinking. Keep doing. Keep getting connected.


Mahoning Valley View
Reinvent the Wheel, or Encourage More Efficient Rotation?

Youngstown Pride
New Leaders, New Business, and a New Way of Getting Things Done

Youngstown Renaissance
Some Environmental Impacts of Black Monday

Defend Youngstown
Post-Steel Generation Fights for Change

Stark Raving Youngstown
From Black Monday to Bright Future

The Stage @ The Oakland
From Rust to Stardust

I Will Shout Youngstown
Youngstown’s Opportunity to Become a More Interconnected Community

how to live forever

"a stellar example of what a citizen should be"

Such was written in a local newpaper about Bob Fitzer, musician and citizen activist who lost his battle with pancreatic cancer in May.

He was a renowned clarinetist, playing Carnegie Hall at 19 years of age, and was a faculty member at Youngstown's Dana School of Music. He was the president of the Citizens' League of Greater Youngstown and from 1995 to 2001, he served as host and producer of the WYSU radio show Commentary Cafe.

He was a friend and teacher to many.


And in the weeks and months after his passing, many tributes to Bob appeared in the media and local blogs.

Stories were written in the Youngstown Vindicator, the Warren Tribune-Chronicle, YSU publications, the Jambar, Louie Free's blog, the Business-Journal, and message boards . . .

The Metro Monthly even has a special page up for Bob, which includes a recent interview and his entry in the Congressional Record.

Here is the most recent photo I have of Bob, leading a tour in January after the initial meeting to save the facade of the State Theater. He is explaining to a group of people the structure's footprint between Federal Street and Boardman Street downtown:


- - -

So depending if someone decides to leave these stories in the archives or on data servers, the memories we produce on the internet will exist for public access for hundreds, if not thousands of years to come.

In the year 2050, will someone stumble upon the memory of Bob Fitzer?

In the year 3000, will someone be reading the archives of the Shout Youngstown blog?

perhaps.

But only if we generate the content.

Blogging and the internet presents us with a unique format to preserve the memories that are important to us, even when we are no longer on this earth.

What stories do you have, that you wish your family may read one day?

Is there some detail about your mom, or your old neighborhood that you can share?

Blogging allows us to do this for future generations. If you want to create a blog recalling the stories about your family, setting up a blog is as easy as creating an email account. You can start here or here and have a story online within twenty minutes.

Interested? Give it a try, and then post your blog in the comments section below. Then others can read your stories, and perpetuate the memories that are important to you.

Perhaps then, leveraging technology to record memories, is a way to live forever.

- - -

Bob's public memorial concert will be on Friday, July 27 at 7:30 in the Ford Recital Hall at the Deyor Performing Arts Center in Downtown Youngstown.

Another great local blog, Youngstown Renaissance, listed Bob Fitzer's 10 rules of living. Some good words to live by, now recorded to be read for generations . . .

Bob (aka "Bobby", aka "Bobbo") Fitzer's 10 Rules of Living:
1. Get Involved
2. Be Kind
3. Never Give Up
4. Rejoice in the Success of Others
5. Take Chances
6. Be Humble
7. Embrace Chaos
8. Take Time
9. Trust in Your Intuition
10. Don't Move to the Suburbs

the state of the state address

Had the opportunity to stop by Cedar's Cafe on Friday night for a community meeting about the future of the State Theater located on West Federal Street.

Here is a rundown of the situation:

According to the myspace page of the meeting's organizers, the State Theatre was constructed in 1915 and is the oldest theater remaining downtown. It was renamed the Agora in the 1970s and closed for good in the 1980s. Since that time, the structure has been boarded up, only to be entered by the occasional curious explorer, pigeons, and rainwater. So for about two decades, this historical structure has deteriorated in appearance and structural stability.


Fast forward to January 2007. The property is now owned by the Youngstown Community Improvement Corporation (CIC), a non-profit entity which maintains control over many of the empty buildings downtown. The Youngstown Business Incubator is looking to expand its operations in close proximity to its main building, with ground broken for an adjacent 30,000 sq. ft. space for its growing companies, and hoping to rennovate two additional existing historic structures on the same block.

Under this scenario, every building between Hazel Street and the Home Savings and Loan Building would then have a plan for future function, with the exception of the State Theater and the Armed Forces building next door.

But what to do with these buildings? Some advocate their demolition so the space can be used for surface parking lots. Others advocate their total restoration. Others advocate a compromise between these two extremes.

And it was at this meeting over the weekend that many of these possibilities were discussed. Questions such as "Is the seating section of the theater intact?" and "Has a day been chosen to demolish the existing structures?" as well as "Is the facade worth saving?" were posed by those seated in the audience.


So based upon statements made both during and after the meeting, here is a quick list featuring a wide range of possibilities for the State Theater:

plan a - Rennovate the entire structure, facade and all, back to operational capacity.
plan b - Demolish the stage and auditorium between Boardman Street and the alley, rennovate the existing portion between the alley and West Federal, and keep the facade in place.
plan c - Demolish everything behind the facade, keep the facade in place, and use it as the front of a new building, pavillion, or public space structure.
plan d - Demolish everything behind the facade, keep only a structurally reinforced facade in place, and illuminate it.
plan e - Move the facade to another location in the city and demolish the rest.
plan f - Demolish everything, save nothing, dance on the ashes.

Maybe it is time for members of the public, the staff at the CIC, the stakeholders of the business incubator expansion, and members of the mayor's administration to sit down and listen to eachother's interests. At that point, it may be possible to estimate the short-term costs and long-term consequences of each of the possible plans.


And to be certain, it was exciting to see a diverse group of forty to fifty Youngstown-Americans come together and discuss the future of our downtown, and hitting the streets to explore the landscape. Of the two people who organized this initial meeting, one is a high school student and the other is a freshman in college. It is a small reminder that in the city of Youngstown, both the younger generations and the older generations have the ability to contribute to its future.

Indeed a receptive audience seems to be out there. Keep it coming.

Unique Youngstown...

…It doesn’t quite have the same ring as ‘Unique New York,’ but that doesn’t make us any less interesting. I recall reading a piece in Scene magazine several months ago that pointed out the over-usage of 'New York' and 'Manhattan' as adjectives when describing events in other cities. Example: “Come to the hottest New York style night club in town!!” But what do they have that we don't?

The fact is we have a lot to offer. We are a very diverse city with a lot of character, tons of history, and a bright future. So, in order to foster some dialogue, I would like to pose this question to you:

What do you find unique about Youngstown?

It can be anything at all. The beauty of this question is that it is so broad. I suspect that you already have an answer in mind. Maybe it’s a memory that you have of the city or maybe it’s a piece of little known trivia. Hopefully it's positive. I’ll start things rolling with two very different tales…

I was walking around downtown when I asked myself the question. The answer was revealed to me instantly as I looked to the heavens...

Divine intervention? Maybe. Very unique (and intriguing) column capital? Definitely. Truth be told, this column capital (located at S. Phelps and W. Boardman) is probably not really unique. It may very well be a catalogue piece that turns up in other cities across the country. When I first saw it, though, I remember thinking how cool it was. The same excitement comes over me every time I look up and discover a new detail in the city. The tops of buildings are often a great place to find bits of art and whimsy. Therefore, my answer is that Youngstown is unique because of its buildings and building details.

Of course what makes us unique is not only physical. When asked the same question, a friend answered with an exciting tale of the incredible social clubs throughout the city. What he finds exciting about Youngstown is the strong ethnic diversity and social clubs that we have managed to hold on to. The example he gave was of the Palm Café on Steel Street. Although I have never been there myself, what he described to me sounded wonderful – A weekly spit roast that draws in hoards of people to get a hearty helping of roasted pig or lamb.

I can think of loads of other places around town that have maintained their ethnic roots (think pierogi from St. Stanislaus) while inviting others to join them in celebration (think Gathering of the Irish Clans) and dozens of social clubs that have become institutions (think Avalon Gardens). So...Youngstown is unique because of its diverse associations.

If you think Youngstown is unique, please leave a post today and let us all in on your favorite little piece of it...even if you think it is only important to you. Also, if you have the chance, ask your co-workers/friends/family/bar-tender what their answer would be.

I guarantee you will learn something new and exciting.

what creates a memory of a city?

On this weekend where we collectively consider memories, I did a quick search about "Youngstown" limited to other blogs websites. Here is a collection of interesting blogs that have been posted recently, adding to the collective memory of the region on the internet. Is the Mahoning Valley:

turning the corner? (link)

a role model for New Orleans? (link)

a penal colony? (link)

a source for magazine pin-ups? (link)

a good place for a night out? (link)

a teacher of life's lessons? (link)

All of these comments, added up over the years and spread from person to person, may form our image in the future.