The John Locke Foundation’s Agenda 2006 took a look at some of the weirdness that passes for governance in the state and proposed sane alternatives. Members of the think tank, however, would have to have been totally off their rockers to even anticipate the likes of what Asheville is trying to do. In addition to the standard fare of government-growing, liberty-depriving regulations proposed for cities like Portland and Boulder, Asheville has the HUB Project.
The Hub Project is an economic development collaboration in which the City of Asheville is being asked to partner (pony up). Traditional forms of economic development represent a bewildering use of taxpayer money. Local governments tax their citizens to entice wealthy corporations with goodies in the hopes they’ll locate in their tax base and not another municipality’s.
By contrast, the HUB wants to subsidize industry marginalized by the market. Clusters such as rejuvenation (yoga, acupuncture), creativity (a lecture by a master quilter, e.g.), and climate awareness need government money. Biltmore Farms, one of the wealthiest developers in Western North Carolina, is requesting $35,000 to market the handcraftmanship in a HandMade in America home. Government, we are told, can, through junkets and glossies, help architects to integrate handcrafted items into their projects. $24,250 is needed for a six-minute video that will brand Asheville as an arts destination. Another idea in need of funding is an urban design lab that would include “decision support resources†for local governments including a visual wall, Geodome, and Decision Theater.
