The increased crime and high vacancy rates in Lee County merited a mention this month in The Atlantic in an article entitled The Next Slum? 

The article’s prediction of suburban flight back to urban areas leading to suburban slums may seem dire, but even if it proves true in general, there are a number of important factors that can prevent this from happening here in Southwest Florida.

First of all, people will always love the beach! Both tourists and retirees of all incomes will continue to enjoy the idea of vacationing and living in Florida, and once housing prices drop to a certain point, people around the country will surely recognize a good bargain when they see it. Even if it may still be a few years off, an eventual increased influx of tourists and retirees (not to mention students) will go a long way towards reinvigorating the local economy.

The second thing the area has going for it is that there are a number of people in both the private sector and local and county government who recognize the need to develop more “lifestyle centers.” That is livable spaces with housing, office, and shopping in walking distance tha serve as an alternative to the car based model of living that currently chokes our roads today. The development of the River District in downtown  Fort Myers is an excellent example of this.

In both of these cases though, government on all levels need to take a proactive approach to encouraging these trends. This includes offering incentives to developers to take a chance with developments that might seem financially risky in the short run, such as investing in Lifestyle Centers, but will offer long term benefits for the entire community.  Also, doing more to encourage tourism probably couldn’t hurt. 

Another important step is to make sure that there is sufficient revenue to ensure that the essential federal, state, and local infrastructure is in place. This includes education, medical care, emergency services, law enforcement, parks and beaches, utilities, and roads.

Finally, the best investment that government can encourage is an investment in our middle class. We need to make sure that the working class people who are the backbone of our economy here in southwest Florida earn a decent, living wage that enables them to participate fully in all the wonderful benifits of living in this area. 

It’s not enough to simply provide tax-breaks for the wealthiest of our residents, snowbirds, and tourists. To maintain a real sustainable economy, we need to make sure that jobs in the area, and all over the nation, pay enough that people can maintain a reasonable standard of living without mortgaging and charging themselves into mountains of debt.

We certainly can prevent the suburbs of Southwest Florida  from turning into “the next slums,” but in order to do that we need leadership in government that truly understands the changes that need to happen. And that, my friends, is why I’m running…