Economic Justice must prevail - the story of City Market: 2/18/2022

Friends,

You may have seen my thoughts on economic justice laid out on my website. In the economic justice section, I say in part, "We cannot solve the affordability crisis without a dynamic and just economy. An economy that is affordable for everyone has to be built on the values of equity and solidarity to be successful. . . . Some call it a Solidarity Economy that builds Community Wealth."

To do this we have to move away from the Weinberger Administration's neo-liberal approach, which relies on "the invisible hand of the market" and the hope that wealth will trickle down to the rest of us. Our greatest successes in building wealth that is shared broadly have come through a dynamic and public oriented City economic development strategy. What comes to mind is the Waterfront, the pedestrian and public Church St. Marketplace District, BED, and CEDO's former emphasis on supporting and growing locally owned businesses.

There was a time when CEDO really engaged in exciting and meaningful economic activity. I want to share one of these success stories, the relocation of the Onion River Coop to downtown 20 years ago. City Market's downtown relocation was done on City owned land and with City support. The move was and is a testament to what we can do when we have the vision and commitment, and devote the resources, to build an economy that works for all and not just a privileged few.

This video tells part of the story.

I hope it inspires us to build the Solidarity Economy we need. A few more of my thoughts are on my website.

If you have ideas, please share them by emailing me at: [email protected].

Thank you.

Gene

The story of City Market - Watch here