The Creative Class Speaks

"[T]he city itself -- not the city government or its policies, but the physical remnants of a former Midwestern industrial powerhouse -- is the attraction [for the creative class]...The factories, the warehouses and the rubble...[have] inspired and enabled artistic expression..." Says one artist, "The zones [developers] are creating are way too expensive for many artists to afford. That may be good for the city, but not for artists because we don't develop a sustained area." "But the bigger question for Cleveland and for those who are disciples of Richard Florida, is not whether Cleveland can attract creative people, but whether the city can retain them and offer a market for their wares."