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Ellen Belcher is the Dayton Daily News opinion pages editor. She writes about state government, education, the environment, higher education and all things Dayton.
Martin Gottlieb is an editorial writer and columnist for the Dayton Daily News opinion pages. He focuses on the political process itself and does such national issues as war, the economy, taxes and Social Security, as well as a hodge-podge of local and state issues.Home > Blogs > A Matter of Opinion > Archives > 2010 > January > 01
Friday, January 1, 2010
Editorial: Bad years don’t define Dayton
Enough about 2009 and how it was so lousy. It’s a new day, a new year and a new decade. Time to move on.
So what can be different in Dayton in, say, another 10 — short — years?
— What if there were more housing downtown, a lot of it and the kind 20-somethings want? That would go a long way toward making the city more vibrant.
— By then, all those new jobs that are coming to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base as a result of the BRAC process will be firmly planted here. Will we have successfully leveraged them, persuading defense contractors and space and aviation-related businesses that this is a good place to have a local presence?
— Will Dayton feel like a university town, what with the University of Dayton being well on its way to growing its footprint to the Great Miami River?
— Will anyone even remember that, once upon a time, NCR was Carillon Park’s neighbor?
— Will Dayton’s airport finally have some serious development around it, capitalizing on space and facilities that are perfect for companies that want to be a big fish in a mid-sized pond?
— When those million visitors come to the Air Force museum each year, will there be a better system for getting them to stay around for longer than a day to see Dayton’s other aviation-related sites and to take in some arts programming and to eat at area restaurants?
— Will there really be trains stopping in downtown, making Dayton more connected to Cincinnati, Columbus and even Cleveland, which could only be a good thing for a state that’s rich in livable cities?
— Will Montgomery County’s orchestrated outreach to Israel, and Wright State University’s and UD’s partnerships with businesses and universities in China, be paying off with new businesses here?
— By then, will outsiders have learned about Dayton’s “liquid gold,” its virtually unlimited supply of clean water? Will the aquifer still be being protected for future generations?
— Is it possible that some towns and burgs will have decided that they don’t want to pay for all the local government that exists today, that less can be more when people are willing to change and share and if they take advantage of technology?
— Will there be real riverfront development connecting Dayton and its suburbs, while at the same time bringing more people to the water, the scenic bike paths and the serene trails that are there for novices and serious outdoor enthusiasts alike?
You get the picture of what the future can be for Dayton and the region. As many hits as the community has taken, it’s still remarkably resilient and feisty. As important, it has taken good care of, and invested in, the things that make this an inviting place to live.
Yeah, yeah, there is much to be worried about; there’s work to do. But take it from the people who’ve been around. The world goes in cycles. And Dayton, and Ohio, couldn’t be more overdue for things to turn around.
The trick is making sure that the opportunities that are in front of all of us aren’t wasted.
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