WE'RE MAD AS HELL AND....YOU KNOW THE REST - THE STATE OF CC

An email exchange yielded the following email from me. It may not be succinctly worded but there's nuggets of truth in there.

This morning a friend sent out a few emails with an underlying theme of frustration about the state of CC. They all went out to people about my age (36) give or take a few years. I believe there's a reason he sent this out to this age group. I believe that we as a city have an age issue, the issue being we (30somethings or very close to it) are underrepresented. There's an argument about whether we're underrepresented because there aren't very many of us or that if we as an age group choose to not take a seat at the table, but I believe that this demographic hole will be the death of our city if SOMETHING doesn't happen.

Two Fridays ago I was with a friend when the Whataburger story officially broke. My friend and I are both optimists, both cheerleaders for the city. Bryan Smith's resignation was a day old and now here's Whataburger....and we both kind of looked at each other and said, "Man...CC is really going down the tubes right now." I hated that I was saying that. If you know me at all, you know I'm one of those never-say-anything-negative guys: keep the positive spin up; keep a smile on your face. I hate to let the pessimism sneak out and know many of the politically-inclined will never say a negative word, but I feel that there's an undercurrent among people our age just like yours, "I just can't take it anymore." I believe that people our age are tired (to the point of actually doing something about it) of talk-without-action and the sunshine-y posturing from our leaders.

It is an organizational truth that without innovation, every organization dies. Organizations begin, grow, crest, plateau and decline. This is true of any organization: a friendship, a church, a non-profit, a business, a city. The only prevention of this trend is a purposeful injection of innovation: New innovative products. New branding. New experiences in a relationship. New development and attractions. New, younger, talented players to a baseball team. Fill in the blank as it applies to the organizations you're involved in. If you haven't been growing it's time for PURPOSEFULLY EXECUTED INNOVATION. It can be succinctly boiled down to the adage: If you're not growing, you're shrinking. A step further: If you're shrinking, you're dying. If a business isn't growing, it's dying. If a city isn't growing, it's dying. Is CC growing? (Never mind the follow up "in relation to other Texas cities" because then we're really scr*wed)

Recently, two of CC's five high schools downgraded from 5A to 4A. These classifications are based on attendance in relation to other schools in the state. This is problematic on two fronts: Our numbers of high schoolers are shrinking, and the threshold to remain a 5A school is rising. In other words, school classifications take into account that other Texas cities are growing. Grow with the state or be 'demoted'. Texas (or at least the metropolitan areas) is growing up around us. Is CC a 4A city? I hope not, but fear that's where we're headed. If we're not growing, we're shrinking. If we're shrinking, we're dying.

The powers that be seem to want CC to remain a sleepy, seaside village which does nothing for our age group. I believe that our leaders, God love them for trying, don't know what to do (or how to do what they know needs to be done). People our age have been introduced to so much more that is out there through accessible travel and a constant stream of information and would like to see it grow. I contend that the sleepy seaside burg is a recipe for death. If you're not growing, you're shrinking.

But the most frustrating part is the lack of a clear answer to the question, "So what do we do about it?"

Often times we're sold a magic bullet:
Get a Landry's
Get a Toyota
Get a resort
Keep Whataburger

Those are all great, high concepts, and individually they would have been great booms for the economy. But what about the big picture? What IS the big picture? Is the big picture ONE event (a resort, for example) that triggers other events (as an example on a smaller scale: Whataburger Field begat Brewsters Street, other upcoming development in the area, and an upcoming Justin Timberlake film set in CC to be seen by millions)? The 'one event concept' is dangerous bc the event planned may not be big enough: redoing the bayfront is essential, but not going to bring in the tourists 'they' say it will.

Is the big picture a clear plan that we execute? We've seen 100 plans before and they seem to fizzle out through ineffective leadership or the plan itself not being so great after all.

We can see that CC needs so much, but how do we as individuals make it happen (outside of our voting in the next council/mayoral race)?

I believe that the future of CC, if it is to succeed, will come from new, innovative thought from a new generation of leaders. I believe that our city election ballots need more people under 40 on them. It is up to a new generation--our generation--of leaders to stand up and lead. We must. I believe that the answers to our city's issues lie within our age group even when I, for one, readily admit that I don't know the answers.

I dub us CC's 'Generation Next' and I challenge us to band together as a bloc to demand excellence from here on out. I challenge us to support one another's causes, events and elections.

I look forward to some interesting conversations.

Joe Hilliard
Age: 36