Urban Vancouver

Mitch writes for The Vancouver Manifesto

By samanthaorwell on May 31, 2008 - 2:16pm

http://thevancouvermanifesto.blogspot.com/2008/05/mitch-writes-for-vanco...

We have a new contributor to TheVancouverManifesto. Read more about the regular contributors here

First post by Mitch:

Another Vancouver Manifesto

Well, I’ve decided to take the plunge. That’s right, I’ve decided to join my fellow planner, my fellow Vancouver, and fellow blogger in writing for The Vancouver Manifesto. So, who am I you may ask?

Well, it’s simple really. I’m a highly opinionated, 5th Generation Vancouverite, urban planner and particularly, an urban critic. I’ve personally lived in Vancouver for about 16 years, with a couple years off for graduate school back east, and 1 year of travelling and surfing ‘Down Under’. But the west was calling me home and I have made my home on the West Side of Vancouver since. I have travelled through parts of Europe, Costa Rica, Australia, Indonesia, and Japan, and am proud to say I’ve now surfed in 5 different countries (15 more to go!). I have also been blogging now for upwards of 5 years…

Dear Richard Florida: You aren't nearly as offensive as I thought

By samanthaorwell on January 18, 2008 - 5:28pm

After constantly bashing Richard Florida in almost anything I write I decided to actually read his books. You can't be a good critic if you don't know what you are criticizing. So I finally borrowed Richard Florida's The Rise of the Creative Class from the library. Buying it is not an option- I don't want to give any money to that hack. It's not like I was devoid of all his writings. I read excerpts, his articles, discussed his ideas through seminars. They always offended me. I think I was introduced to Florida in 2003. A year after he came out with the book and a couple years after he introduced his thesis through articles. So it is a fairly new concept even though it feels old (probably because I've been bashing Florida's thesis for years). I was even informed that it was quite the hot topic in scholarly circles. So I'm glad I feel I have a grasp of the whole field since I've been following it almost since conception.

Anyhow, I haven't even finished the book. In fact, I'm only on Chapter 3. But I have to admit, his thesis isn't as offensive as I thought. I just don't think it's necessarily constructive.