Being a "Good" Laveen Resident

I recently posted the following article on our Laveen community Facebook group, with the suggestion that these pointers were good not just for gentrifying urban neighborhoods, but being a good neighbor wherever you live: http://dcentric.wamu.org/2011/05/five-ways-to-be-a-good-gentrifier/

So let's deconstruct this advice for a Laveen-centric approach, using the original article's pointers as a starting point for conversation:

1. "Get involved, but first listen and learn." I posted a guide to getting involved in community groups about 18 months ago, and I hope it can continue to provide a good deal of guidance for new residents: http://www.ourlifeinlaveen.com/2009/12/getting-involved-in-community.html

2. "Say hello to people, and if you have a front porch, use it." Did you know that Laveen's residential development guidelines actually promote including front porches in our communities? I'd say that we've strayed a bit from this original directive in recent years, but I still like to think that we can all get to know our neighbors and be a real community. Let's not try to emulate other insulated suburban areas of Phoenix by closing ourselves off from one another. Quoting a neighbor, Brad, who commented on my original Facebook post on this topic:

Go out of your way to show respect to those who are different from you. Get out of yourself and smile at people you don't know when you come to them in the grocery aisle. Hold the door open at the bank. Ask advice of people. Cut people a lot of slack if they're grumpy. 

If we get out of our cars and walk and bike more we end up talking with more people. More conversations = stronger community.

3. "Have a baby or get a dog." Ummm, not mandatory by any means, but the original story's author was simply pointing out additional ways to break the ice with neighbors who you've otherwise never spoken to. Maybe a nice politically correct twist on this one, which would also provide a great deal of societal good is to consider fostering a pet from the nearby Humane Society's Campus for Compassion. Or maybe keep an eye out for abandoned pets from nearby vacant homes.

4. "Don’t automatically cross the street to avoid young, black kids." Ok, now I'm regretting pasting all of these pointers verbatim. I recommend referring to the originally cited article and consider replacing the terminology with a name for any ethnic or racial group or omitting that language entirely. Kids are kids. You once were a kid and the kids who make you feel threatened probably have a great deal in common with how you were as a kid. If you think about it this way and still feel threatened, then you were a bad kid. Sorry, but they're likely better than you were in many ways, although it's hard to admit. We've got some great kids in Laveen, from state basketball champs to honorary guests at the White House, and everything in between.

5. "Visit local, small businesses and take note of what they offer. Some sell things you actually want." Most people I know are already doing this and I thank you for it, as do the business owners. Going out for a drink? Consider the Spurr Lounge, which is a great neighborhood bar, or Native New Yorker, a local franchise where you're almost sure to run into the owner, Art Greathouse (also a football champ from my high school and university). Grocery shopping? Yeah, I know what I said before about Trader Joe's and Costco, but still, I have received great service at our Fry's and Safeway, and I love going to Food City and Phoenix Ranch Market -- both east of us on Southern. Need a printer or sign maker? Check out the new print shop on 27th and Baseline; Cesar would welcome the business. Chiropractor? Talk to Niels at In & Out Chiropractic or the place by Safeway. Doctor, dentist, veterinarian? Check, check, check. Restaurants? Try all the ones in and around Laveen before assuming you must venture elsewhere. Sure, we need to work on bringing in more local businesses, but we have a few here that may surprise you.

And that's the end of the list, but I will keep spouting off my views, since I still write with the same spirit as when I thought no one read this drivel.... Remember when I posted about civility last year? No, you probably don't. Here's a link: http://www.ourlifeinlaveen.com/2010/08/on-civility.html

I love the fact that the person I mentioned in that post was passionate about her neighborhood -- in fact I'd like to see more of this spirit -- but please go about it in a constructive and harmonious manner. We do not need hermits; we need engaged and caring community members. Are you up for it? Please say yes.

Retail Hopes and Dreams for Laveen

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but let's face it, Laveen faces an uphill battle with regard to desirable retail expansion into the area. We absolutely cannot take for granted all of the reasons we know, intrinsically, that Laveen should be more attractive to retailers. We may know the story, but do they? No, they do not. We're barely on the map for most retailers and our reasons for appearing on the map -- we must admit -- are often as much for good reasons as bad ones in the commercial real estate sector.

I'm inspired to finally write another blog post on this subject after responding to a facebook link from my friend Erika, regarding her renewed campaign to request Trader Joe's for the area. Add to this the fact that it's a Sunday afternoon and, as soon as our toddler son awakes from his nap, we will be headed out for our weekend shopping excursion to Costco, Trader Joe's, and maybe then to Grandma's house for dinner. This is a recurring theme for weekends that we're in town. We easily spend 50-75% of our grocery budget outside of the community in any given month because we simply cannot find the groceries we really want closer to home. And we know we're not alone -- many of our friends do the same thing, either traveling east toward Tempe, as we often do, west toward Avondale, or northeast toward Biltmore/Arcadia (our alternate choice if we're in the area). That's a whole lot of retail leakage, and it doesn't even account for all the big ticket items people buy outside the community.

And therein lies the problem, right? We make it too easy by driving to these retailers rather than making them come to us. Sure that's part of the story -- the easily explained minutia part of the story. The other part of the story is the real challenge we face, which is one of demographics and reputation. According to current measurements, which still mostly lack 2010 Census information, we boast very unimpressively average demographic numbers across the board (with a few exceptions that I'll discuss in a future post). But many of them are solidly above average, even if only a little bit, and we know that they tend to be stratified in ways that have yet to be fully analyzed. I would even go so far as to argue that there's gold in them thar' hills of data. For instance, even if we will never have the assortment of trendy restaurants that Old Town Scottsdale or downtown Phoenix boasts, can you imagine being the first to open one in Laveen? Or the second?

[Insert insensitive commercial investment truism that "pioneers get slaughtered and settlers prosper," which is the only reason I bring up being the second rather than first. That said, we know that Laveen boasts some notable exceptions to this rule.]

Better understanding our situation and helping others to do the same is the path to growth for Laveen. Yes, there is a ton of opportunity here and, as I've asserted before, it will be realized by some savvy investor(s) sooner than many people think. But we cannot go blindly forward without also taking note of our challenges. Take for instance our empty retail space: I adore the shopping center at 35th and Baseline, but I'm tired of hearing the braggadocio about its design as long as it sits mostly empty. Seriously, talk about a white elephant! I'd love to own such a beautiful and well situated center, if not for its cash flow problems (and again, I argue that its only real hope is a seriously discounted sale by the bank). Likewise, let's not forget about the failing Mervyn's shopping center or the persistent vacancies and business failures everywhere in Laveen besides 51st and Baseline. And please do not take for granted Terrazona's tireless efforts to bring in LA Fitness, which I still say was a major coup for Michael Moreines and his people, given the timing (search this blog for a history lesson about that deal). It's ugly out there, especially for retail in Laveen.

This is why I ask simply that people put themselves in the shoes of commercial real estate agents and economic development professionals as we encourage retail growth in our community. They are the major influencers, after all, and they are the ones with some serious explaining to do about the state of our market every time they pitch a business about expanding here. So let's help them out a little.

I proffer the following suggestion, and I welcome any and all thoughtful challenges or additions to it if it means we're starting a meaningful dialog:

Let's build a good old SWOT Analysis for the Laveen market and help change the paradigm for economic development in our community. Clearly something is not working on the macro level and, as always, we're generally neglected outside of our little burb, despite ongoing efforts by Councilman Nowakowski and State Representative Ruben Gallego, who have thankfully taken a particular interest in Laveen. Let's prove that we know our village better than anyone else, we know how to highlight Laveen's successes, and we know how to slice and dice the data so that it fits our vision for the area. If we don't, I promise that we will get more of the same, and who needs more nail salons, fast food restaurants, and dollar stores.

And while we put forth this immense effort, of which I know we're capable, I encourage you to send your own message to the likes of Trader Joe's (click here for TJ's request form). Here's my message to Trader Joe's, which I hope they read:

[Dear Mr. Joe (or Trader, for short),]

Laveen is probably not on your map, except for the recent barrage of requests you are likely receiving. But it is a growing area of Phoenix with a solid school district and above average reputation for community involvement (hence the ease of this letter writing campaign). Like many other newly growing areas of the Phoenix market, Laveen has faced some setbacks in the housing market during recent years. But unlike those areas, it is uniquely situated near the geographic center of the metro area and has a real promise of future economic growth resulting from a planned freeway, hospital, and other substantial commitments to the area. All of these factors, as well as the broad range of housing options, serve to entice more and more young professionals to the area, which would create an excellent customer base for your store or a competitor. For more information about Laveen in advance of the 2010 Census updates, please look us up on facebook, take a look at laveen.org, or feel free to reference my (outdated) blog at www.ourlifeinlaveen.com. Thank you for your consideration.

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's about time that I share this story, and there's no better week than this one.  It's a childhood story about what this holiday means to me....

I remember it wasn't long after learning all about the Thanksgiving holiday's origins (the kindergarten version, where Squanto teaches Pilgrims how to grow corn, so they teach his people how to blow their whole harvest on one meal), that I started thinking about the meaning of Thanksgiving.

My mom, my brother and I were on our way to my grandparents' house for dinner one year and, since my mom hates driving on the freeway (there was basically only one back then), we took surface streets through town.  Along the way from our home in Tempe to her parents' home in the Biltmore/Madison area of Phoenix, we always had an interesting drive -- I paid keen attention to all the sites along the way, from colorful businesses with exciting signage to a wide swath of different residential areas that boasted just about every socioeconomic class represented in Phoenix at the time.

I didn't fully appreciate the variety of sights that comprised this semi-urban landscape at the time, but I suddenly became aware of an important societal issue on this particular drive.  It was that of poverty in an otherwise plentiful world -- the only world I knew.  Sure my parents faced financial difficulties from time to time, but I somehow never felt that we were in need of anything we didn't have: there was always food on the tables -- copious amounts for the holidays -- as well as a roof over our heads and everything else that made for an otherwise comfortable childhood.  This was the world I knew, where I could grow up to do anything I wanted as long as it bettered society, and I would be justly rewarded for it (becoming president didn't sound so bad, for instance).  And this optimism was all largely thanks to those original Pilgrims and Native Americans who figured out how to make for a plentiful life to benefit all of posterity in our great country.

On this day, however, I noticed an adult man walking slowly along the sidewalk who stuck out for one reason alone: he didn't look like he was part of my world that day, although this seemed impossible to me.  Just as when I'm headed to a big festival or sporting event (or going to the polls on election day), I can't help but feel like we're all unified with a singular purpose on days like Thanksgiving; we're all the same.  We're all celebrating our good fortune, whether it's thanking God for all that has been bestowed upon us or just being grateful to reap what we've sown through our hard work the rest of the year.  Yet this sole stranger -- I can still picture him vividly -- did not look as content and joyful as I felt he deserved.  He clutched a bagged loaf of Wonder Bread in his arms, pulling out slices of this convenience-store nutriment to sate his hunger as he slowly meandered along the roadside.

To see a sad, lonely, and hungry face on Thanksgiving was thoroughly jolting to me.  It brought tears to my eyes as I pondered why he was eating white bread (which I knew even then was a substandard form of sustenance), rather than enjoying a nice Thanksgiving feast with his family or neighbors.  In fact, it brings tears to my eyes now just to recall the memory -- even as a slightly more cynical and world wary adult.  I knew then as I know now, that this man must not have had much choice about how to spend his Thanksgiving.  He was likely homeless and alone, or so I concluded, and no one had invited him to dinner on this most joyous and wonderful of days to eat a bountiful meal and celebrate with loved ones.

The rest of the memory is slightly blurred.... I'm pretty sure that I tried to hide my tears at all costs, but then I'm equally certain that I begged my mom to turn around and invite the stranger to come with us.  After all, if we knew we'd have leftovers (there were always leftovers after these big meals), then why not make an extra plate for our fellow man -- it would make us all feel better and seemed so easy.  Now, please understand that my mom would have been crazy to pick up a total stranger when driving alone with two small children, and as an adult I would call that good parenting, so I'm sure this was difficult for her.   If you know my family, then I'm sure you understand why I felt so strongly about helping someone in need -- this is who we are.

To this day, I remember that one occasion when I did not reach out a helping hand even though I knew I should have.  I'm sure there were plenty of other such days when I could have done more to help someone, but I need only recall this memory to appreciate the ultimate power of empathy and the satisfaction or guilt that accompanies my choices in the face of others' adversity.  Empathy, I believe, is the most universal currency we have and it's the foundation upon which our society is built (look up Jeremy Rifkin for a wonderful perspective on this branch of philosophy).

So this Thanksgiving and every one hereafter, I give thanks not only for the usual things -- good health, fortune, family, and friends -- but also for the great showing of empathy that gave way to our first American Thanksgiving holiday and laid the groundwork for us to adapt and thrive here.  As a token of my gratitude, I aspire to follow in Squanto's footsteps; following my own vision while also helping others who may be different from myself, because it's the right thing to do.  After all, we're all in this together and we've seen what can be achieved just by being there to help those in need.

Call for Candidates

If you are running for public office, either statewide or in a district that includes Laveen, I'd love to interview you via email and post our interview to this blog.  Please reach out to me at ptbrennan @ gmail (dot ) com if interested.

Thanks,
Patrick

Retail Update -- Interim Post

It would be premature to shout from the rooftops that retail growth is turning positive again for Laveen, but it sure feels that way, doesn't it? I'm positive that I'll be complaining about the ridiculous wait for a treadmill soon enough..... Also, it looks like the Phoenix metro retail market is starting to grow in ways more favorable to us. Please see the following article from AzCentral:

Developers, retailers focusing on infill areas

My prediction..... as soon as we can better quantify the Laveen market's demographics -- and this day is rapidly approaching -- the shopping center owners/managers can let the floodgates loose for new growth. Of greatest interest to me is dining -- we need more sit-down restaurants. I feel quite confident that this is a huge area of opportunity for our community.

Finally, it's worth noting that I've had many positive discussions with people who can help get us where we want to be. One anonymous source: "Laveen has weathered the recession better than most local communities, and it's time that we revise our outlook" (a little background: I attended a less than encouraging meeting a couple of years ago with the very professionals who should have shown more interest in our community back then). The tides are indeed turning, and people are beginning to notice us more than ever. So please, hang in there, and continue patronizing Laveen and South Mountain area businesses. Our best hope for new services is to encourage those who have already found success here and are looking to grow.

Further Notes on Retail

Please take a look at this post I just completed for my other, more professional, blog.  It relates to an upcoming article I'm writing about our wonderful new transit stop planned for Laveen (hint: I'm being slightly sarcastic).

On Civility

It's really quite amazing when you think about all of the various community groups we have in Laveen and the fact that it actually feels like a community.  Neighbors tend to know each other, we all tend to share a concern about what happens around us, and from my experience I'd say we're pretty good people as a whole.  However, there are certainly times when I wish that we would remind ourselves of these positive attributes and use them to promote better resolutions to our trivial day-to-day problems.

I feel compelled to share a story that made me laugh last week, although I was actually quite disappointed by the lost opportunity for community members to work together.  I'm sure that by blogging about this encounter, I risk further irritating an already stressed individual who shall remain anonymous; but hopefully she'll understand that my intent here is positive...... And so, with that preface out of the way, I'll add that this is a person who I looked forward to meeting eventually so that I could compliment her well kept front yard and hopefully inquire about her landscaping choices and trade notes.  But our first meeting was anything but this kind of neighborly exchange.  Here's how it actually went down....

As I walked up to our daycare provider's home to pick up my son one day last week, I caught a glimpse of the neighbor storming out of her garage to "greet" me.  Almost as soon as I saw her, I was surprised to hear a rather angry tone as she yelled, "Stay off my property!"  Surely, there's a misunderstanding, right?  I may have noticed her front yard on the many occasions that I've driven by her house, but did not recall ever setting foot on her property.  This concerned me -- I'm really not accustomed to people approaching me in such a way, so my assumption in this case was either that there was a misunderstanding or she's simply crazy.  As it turns out, there may have been a little of both at play.

I may have smirked a tiny bit with discomfort as I said it, but I replied genuinely that I hadn't been on her property and would never trespass onto her property.  She must have me mistaken with someone else, I said.  To this, she snarled back at me, "I see you turn around in my driveway every day because I'm sitting in my office right there!"  Now, I realized that we aren't even on the same page.  I have in fact made a u-turn in front of her residence a few dozen times, this afternoon included; but I didn't exactly cross over her property line, even if I may have driven up the curb.... at least I didn't think so.  This is the point in a stressful situation when my analytical mindset often gets me in trouble.  I felt duty bound to explain the technicalities of property lines and public easements (thankfully she didn't give me a chance to get into the deeper technical issue of roads/sidewalks as possibly being both private and public at the same time, which was not really relevant anyhow).  But before I could even properly defend myself and explain that this person was wrong, she informed me that she would call the police next time and she stomped back into her cave garage (oops).

Here's my main problem with this whole scenario: Obviously, this person was just as eager to meet me as I was to meet her, although we had very different intentions.  I had built up my expectations to what would hopefully be a pleasant exchange, as I've come to expect from other random encounters with fellow Laveen residents.  She, on the other hand, had obviously been building up enough resentment to finally go yell at a total stranger, and she finally found the opportunity.  The problem with the actual encounter, from my point of view, is that it literally crushed a good deal of my desire to send good vibes toward this home and homeowner (plus, I learned to doubt that there were ever any good vibes headed my way).  Instead, I was faced with a battle between my ego (which is almost always up for a good argument), my inner adolescent (wearing a devil costume on my shoulder, it said "hey, let's go get a carton of eggs. Hehehe"), and the optimist in me (thinking "wow! This person really cares about her neighborhood").  Don't worry, I've long since learned to ignore the inner adolescent, but I can't say that I've completely settled the dilemma between the other two forces.

If I weren't as concerned and thoughtful about this encounter, however, this woman's behavior would merely be an invitation for passive aggressive retribution on a constant basis.  I can only imagine how many kids she yells at who then return the favor with TP and/or eggs (they still do that, right?); or how many other parents like myself would respond by letting off a little steam every day with an extra slo-mo turn in front of her house.  I'm not condoning this kind of incivility, but let's face it -- it happens.

So in an effort to create a win-win situation, I propose that this woman and I each step back a few paces and consider what it is about ourselves that created this encounter, versus another.  Think about all the positives that could have arisen from a meeting of our minds: I could improve my own landscaping thanks to her tips, which would then create an ever-so-slight improvement to the community as a whole (ok, that may be a stretch, but perhaps I could offer some advice in exchange); or, even more importantly, it's a chance for three vigilant community members (her, the daycare provider, and me) to get together and discuss what we're seeing around the neighborhood.  In any event, we could have created more empathy, which is like gold on a social currency scale.  Seriously, if this woman were not so high strung, I couldn't imagine a better block than one with a home daycare provider and someone who works from home, both keeping an eye on things.  If we could sit down and discuss best practices for an active daytime blockwatch, this could be excellent information to spread to the rest of the community.  But this requires a meeting of the minds and a civil discussion.

I really hope that she reads this blog so that next time we run into each other I'll have already safely communicated my desire to make peace, and we can cast aside any need to argue the finer details.  As a peace offering, I'll even promise to make my u-turns before or after her property to ease her concerns about tire marks or whatever the issue is.  But I urge everyone else to try harder to approach any such situation with a more open mind -- I know that I'm still frequently reminded of this, as I make my own mistakes in dealing with people.  But I really do strive to coast along and make everyone happier and better off for having met me.  It's just my nature.

And as the optimist should always win over the ego, I'll end with this silver lining:  Regardless of whether I ever get to speak to this person again, I'm pleased to know that there's yet another set of eyes on our daycare provider's property.  I just hope that this person has some sense of gratitude to match.