This weekend, Downtown Spokane should be abuzz. The word renaissance has been beaten silly in recent years, but the signs are all there that it may actually be happening, and this weekend’s “Live it Up!” event showcases much of the proof. For those that haven’t heard the hoopla, many of downtown’s new condo projects are opening their doors this weekend – showing off the tip of the iceberg, as it were, in terms of new downtown investment. Take everything on display this year, triple it, and that’s what you’ll find downtown by this time next year. It's growth for sure, but renaissance isn't about quantity - it's about quality. To put it another way, it ain’t about the money, it’s about the ideas and culture it's supposed to foster.

What does any of this have to do with scooters? At least two things:

 1. My wife called me tonight from Austin, Texas – a city most consider superior to Spokane in many respects – and reported that “there’s LOTS of scooters around here.” On a recent visit to her absolute favorite city - Portland, Oregon - she noted the same thing. This from a person who isn’t terribly interested in scooters.

2. Our new friend Mark wants to work on improving conditions for two-wheeled vehicles. Specifically, he’s interested in seeing if the City might be persuaded to stripe and/or designate lots of free parking for folks riding scooters or motorcycles in Downtown. Why? For reasons of fuel and space efficiency, to encourage more commuters to ride instead of drive, and to help Spokane seem more friendly to cycles and scooters. It’s a great cause, made even better by today’s $3.00 and up gasoline.

A few years ago, City boosters brought noted social theorist and author Richard Florida to Spokane. Florida is famous for his book “The Rise of the Creative Class ” which talks quite a bit about places that arguably are renaissance cities. Using these places as models, Florida notes some of the demographic indicators each has in common – and urges us to grow our communities in ways that support and attract such people. A quick version of Florida’s mantra is this: In the new economy, success depends on creativity, and for cities to thrive, they’ve got to find a ways to attract “creative class” folks - people young and old that by nature or education are progressive, optimistic, social, entrepreneurial, etc. Such individuals, Florida argues, are the catalyst for everything else, including the perceived desirability of cities – which drives real economic success.

Interestingly, Austin and Portland are near the top of Florida’s list of places to emulate, and though scooters aren’t among his demographic factors, you can bet that their strong presence in these places shows they could be.

Before Downtown’s big turnaround, a commercial was often aired featuring a rider’s-eye view of the city from the seat of a scooter. The commercial wasn't about scooters per se, but featuring one was obviously intended to imply a certain level of urbanity – a “cool factor” that seems to come with scooters these days. Perhaps it’s time to show off a real downtown full of them. Think how cool that would be. Practical? Yes. Important in terms of visitors calling home to relay how lively and urban Spokane seems? Florida would say so.

Mark’s got a good idea to promote. Free parking, like the small tax abatement measure that seems to have sparked the condo craze downtown, could spark a positive transportation trend.

If at next year’s tour, downtown’s buzz includes the sound of lots of two-wheeled vehicles, it’ll be good for us, and good for the sake of growing a real Spokane renaissance.

See related link: http://www.parkingnow.org