The Civic Capacity Countdown: #2 - The City Asks a Judge to tear down a Building

The narrative on the IOOF/Old Miami Courthouse took a final shift in March

This past Friday, I had the opportunity to stop by the IOOF/Old Miami Courthouse as the Troy Historic Preservation Alliance opened the building up to tours and to thank their generous donors throughout the project. It was a pleasant evening filled with wonderful company.

As I milled around and talked to folks, one person wanted to discuss the work being done here at Civic Capacity, and this particular article, which is by far and way, the most read piece of work that has been published here.

“This became the turning point for me,” this person said. “That letter that was sent out by the new lawyer, that is not how things should be done in this town. In my mind, this building became a battle between good and evil. That’s when I supported the project.” That seemed like some pretty harsh language, but looking back at what transpired, I can understand where this individual was coming from.

This publication has been accused by certain individuals and institutions of spreading “false narratives” in the community. That is nothing more than wind in this publication’s sails. Our readers would be well reminded that those that make these accusations are the same individuals that are more interested in “being right than doing the right thing” (to quote THPA President Ben Sutherly).

Civic Capacity is all about informing our communities so that the people who live here can create communities that are stronger and more resilient. I grew up in a hometown, where cooperation, mutual trust and concern for others were bedrock principles in which our community operated.

There are those that still believes in those foundational values and as time has marched on, it is plainly true that there are those that do not.

Leaders reflect their followers. And if we are going to have leaders and institutions that are cooperative, trustworthy and compassionate, it is on us as regular citizens to begin to exhibit those traits on a daily basis as we live our lives in our community.

The key to making our community better is often what we can do for our hometown, and not rely on what our leaders do.

Thanks for reading today’s Civic Capacity Newsletter! Did you know, for less than $1 per week, you can support this effort to bring local news and information directly to you and your neighbors? If you have not considered being a paid subscriber to this effort, please do so. Through your generous paid subscription, you are helping provide this information to our community!

Feel free to share this information! Through informing and educating our community’s stakeholders, we are creating a stronger community. Civic Capacity is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Also, our reader survey for May is looking for responses! Feel free to share your thoughts and ideas, you can access the survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PF6SPPN