In this year after we sent the first Chicagoan to the White House, the spirit of possibility was never stronger. And no matter where you stood on the desirability of the Olympics bid, there was no denying the dynamic of seeing the city’s business, government and cultural communities banding together to try to make something great happen. Sure, it would have quickly dissolved into a fair bit of the old “where’s mine” had we won the bid, but the events of these last two years have driven home the power of a communal effort to achieve a larger goal. Let’s not lose that spirit, but instead redirect it into immediate efforts to make no little plans in other ways. Imagine, for example, a harnessing of civic energy across all spectra of cultural, civic and commercial realms to, once and for all, turn the CTA into the world-class public transit that our city deserves. Or to turn the last four miles of lakefront into the public park that embodies our city’s heritage. Or… Why not still make 2016 a landmark year in Chicago?
Audience choice: Fix the CTA
Best audience comments: “The South Side needs love too”; “If you liked it then you should have put some rings on it’ -a la T-Shirt Deli, Bucktown”; “Adding a fifth star to the Chicago flag”; “arresting hippies”; “The Olympic bid really created some deep thought about improving our infrastructure and repairing and revitalizing our areas of urban blight. It is important that this dialogue not go to waste. Chicago has a lot to be fixed”; “Think locally, act locally.”
