Thanks! I definitely agree that there's something beneath the surface in this place. I think it's mostly the people. All of a sudden, everyone's got a spring in their step. I wonder how that got started. Either way, it's really cool. I love this place. I just wish we could articulate a clear compelling brand. Maybe that's what's so cool about this place. It's cool despite a lot of factors working against it. People fiercely love this place anyway, and that love has increased exponentially in the past year. It's a mystery!
Yea, it does seem like people are a bit more upbeat about the area lately. It's good to hear someone else say that, cause I thought maybe I was just being unfairly negative about Lansing for the past, oh, three years.
But it seems like there's a lot of great projects happening right now, from the fancy-modern art museum to the Ottawa Power Station -finally- getting a tenant after 20 year to the new city market that make downtown feel alive. It's wonderful.
Right! There's *so much* going on right now. I might have a skewed perspective because I'm new, and I'm a student, but over the past year a lot has changed. The TIC and the Hatch in Lansing, YSG, gumball, Lansing Breakfast, Ignite, TEDxLansing, and the list goes on.
Great post. I've been thinking about this same thing actually. I grew up in Northeastern Ohio, near Canton. That whole corner of the state is pretty much urban sprawl from Cleveland. Not a ton of character, lots of box stores and chains.
I also lived in Staunton, Virginia for 2 years. Staunton was a very small, touristy southern town with lots of Victorian charm. They have a replica of Blackfriars playhouse, with a Shakespeare program to match, which fits right in with the antique shops and yearly Victorian Festival. Lots of character, but once you're around awhile, not really that much there (from an urban perspective, at least) either.
What does Lansing have? Lansing is unique in that it's a good-sized metro area (upwards of 500,000 in the msa, I believe) but it's still its own little urban-island in a sea of farmland. We don't have six lane highways or hour-and-a-half waits at Olive Garden like we did in Ohio, but we have -far- more choices and diversity than Virginia. We have the chain stores and strip malls, but we have a whole lot of successful small businesses too. And I think that's what makes us unique.
On first impression, Lansing may not seem like much, but stick around, and you notice there's a lot there, just underneath the surface. This is a town full of people that know how to weather tough times, and are starting to realize that this town, ... you know, this towns pretty cool.
1 point | submitted by nbashaw about 6 months ago
upvote downvoteThanks! I definitely agree that there's something beneath the surface in this place. I think it's mostly the people. All of a sudden, everyone's got a spring in their step. I wonder how that got started. Either way, it's really cool. I love this place. I just wish we could articulate a clear compelling brand. Maybe that's what's so cool about this place. It's cool despite a lot of factors working against it. People fiercely love this place anyway, and that love has increased exponentially in the past year. It's a mystery!
0 points | submitted by jwoodruff about 6 months ago | history
- Edit 1: Minor edit to reword sentence in first graph.
upvote downvoteYea, it does seem like people are a bit more upbeat about the area lately. It's good to hear someone else say that, cause I thought maybe I was just being unfairly negative about Lansing for the past, oh, three years.
But it seems like there's a lot of great projects happening right now, from the fancy-modern art museum to the Ottawa Power Station -finally- getting a tenant after 20 year to the new city market that make downtown feel alive. It's wonderful.
1 point | submitted by nbashaw about 6 months ago
upvote downvoteRight! There's *so much* going on right now. I might have a skewed perspective because I'm new, and I'm a student, but over the past year a lot has changed. The TIC and the Hatch in Lansing, YSG, gumball, Lansing Breakfast, Ignite, TEDxLansing, and the list goes on.
0 points | submitted by jwoodruff about 6 months ago | history
- Edit 1: minor edits
- Edit 2: edits to fix a typo
upvote downvoteGreat post. I've been thinking about this same thing actually. I grew up in Northeastern Ohio, near Canton. That whole corner of the state is pretty much urban sprawl from Cleveland. Not a ton of character, lots of box stores and chains.
I also lived in Staunton, Virginia for 2 years. Staunton was a very small, touristy southern town with lots of Victorian charm. They have a replica of Blackfriars playhouse, with a Shakespeare program to match, which fits right in with the antique shops and yearly Victorian Festival. Lots of character, but once you're around awhile, not really that much there (from an urban perspective, at least) either.
What does Lansing have? Lansing is unique in that it's a good-sized metro area (upwards of 500,000 in the msa, I believe) but it's still its own little urban-island in a sea of farmland. We don't have six lane highways or hour-and-a-half waits at Olive Garden like we did in Ohio, but we have -far- more choices and diversity than Virginia. We have the chain stores and strip malls, but we have a whole lot of successful small businesses too. And I think that's what makes us unique.
On first impression, Lansing may not seem like much, but stick around, and you notice there's a lot there, just underneath the surface. This is a town full of people that know how to weather tough times, and are starting to realize that this town, ... you know, this towns pretty cool.