Let’s solve the frustration that Kingstonians
feel
Don Curtis
Columnists - Wednesday, July 18, 2007 Updated @ 10:22:53 AM
Last year I had the opportunity to interview 45 people across a broad spectrum
of Kingston’s population, in person and in depth.
Every one of the 45 interviewed said that they were frustrated with the city;
most used the word frustrated in the first five minutes of the interview (one in
the first 30 seconds). You can only conclude from this frequency that it is a
very common feeling and one that is very close to the surface. Why are people
frustrated?
1. Those interviewed commented that we have an ideal location and a beautiful
setting. We are close to three major cities but don’t have their problems. We
have a wonderful water lifestyle, historic buildings, a vibrant downtown, a
great music scene and safe neighbourhoods. We are populated “with good people
who want to do good things”, and we have a highly educated population. These
things should make us the envy of other cities. “But we are not”, they say.
2. Secondly, everyone comments on the presence of three institutes of higher
learning, (Queen’s University, the Royal Military College, St. Lawrence
College), the military base, three hospitals (Kingston General Hospital, Hotel
Dieu, St. Mary’s) a major Cancer Centre, and a variety of city organizations (KEDCO,
the Chamber of Commerce, Kingston Accommodation Partners, Downtown Business
Improvement Association,) and an enormous resident brain power.
“Given all this, we should be flying.
But we are not.”
3. And they point out that all of the above mentioned organizations are led by
extremely bright people who care deeply about the city. “This should give us a
huge advantage. But it doesn’t seem to.”
Adding up 1, 2 and 3, they truly believe that Kingston should be the envy of
every city in Canada. “I am amazed that we just can’t seem to get down to it.”
THE RESULT = FRUSTRATION.
When asked to explain why they feel this, the opinions expressed are quite
similar and are listed below.
A. Too many silos. Everyone is guarding their own turf. There is no common plan
and no one has a vision for the city. There is no leadership and no champion.
B. There is no communication between the groups, institutions and organizations
with respect to the future of the city.
C. There is no communication from the organizations and institutions to the
public. “We simply don’t know what anyone is doing that would reflect well on
the city.” “We all need to do a better job of communicating what makes this city
special.”
D. There is too much divisiveness. And it is dragging us down.
E. There is too much talk and not enough action. (They remember that it took 30
years to build Block D and 19 years to build Market Square.)
F. The city reputation was and is that Kingston is closed for business and
discourages entrepreneurship.
G. Our brightest young minds leave town to further their careers because of lack
of jobs and opportunity.
H. People who try to step forward are met with apathy or worse, open hostility
and personal attack. “To stand up for something in Kingston is to become a
target; it just doesn’t make sense.”
I. Our taxes are too high because businesses don’t want to locate here and this
puts the burden on the homeowners. “We need to attract more business.”
For your perusal, here is a list of questions that the interviewees posed. They
are well worth thinking about.
1. How can we as a city preserve what is great about our 19th century heritage
but build along side of it for the 21st century?
2. How can we preserve what is great about being “small and slow” yet think big?
3. How can we accommodate the various groups and their varying opinions?
4. How can we stop the bickering, because it is dragging us down?
5. How can we better communicate with each other?
6. How do we bring the north, west, east and centre of the city closer together?
7. How do we better address the social issues and needs of the north end?
8. How do get everyone on the same page, re Kingston’s future?
9. How do we attract the type of businesses and workers that will provide
sustained growth?
10. How do we become a place of open minds and do things (or not do things) just
because that is the way it has always been done?
11. How do we replace cultural entitlement with cultural entrepreneurship?
12. How do we do away with fear of the future, fear of change and
procrastination?
13. How do we stop selling ourselves short rather than celebrate what we have –
because we have a lot.
14. How do we challenge each other to stand up for what we are for, not just
what we are against?
(Note: points 11/12/13/14 were brought up repeatedly and all were seen as
particularly and peculiarly “Kingston problems.”
15. How do we focus our intentions (what we would like to do) versus our
attentions (what we are actually doing)?
16. How are we going to arrive at a common vision for the future and who is
going to make it happen?
The glimmer of good news is that the city has taken some bold steps to build
needed amenities that will hopefully attract new citizens and new investors.
As well, several groups of citizens have come together to address some of the
city’s issues with a view to building a more vibrant, prosperous and growing
city. They will need your help and positive energy.
Don Curtis is a communication professional with over forty years experience. He
has lived in Kingston for the last seven years and is involved in numerous
projects.