Going on now. Will tweet some nuggests from this discussion. If you want to also tweet use the #citytalk hashtag. We are also recording the session

In the US banks are helping funnel $ to small biz (in the US small biz is <500 employees). Banks going to existing clients first. @bruce_katz

Entire city in Calgary had been benefiting from tax base of new office space...as they devalued, taxes got pushed to smaller biz & those outside core (not to residential). Lots of small biz closed in the last 4 years. @maryhmoran

This is the time for small biz to pivot to online/digital since many businesses is closed and people have time. But what happens to those biz that need to be done in person? @builtforretail

What happens to streets, vibrancy and city life?

Need new models of community ownership to support independent local biz @Mark_Downtown. Transformation of retail has been happening for some time - how agile can biz be for the short term to get through shutdown. This will depend on whether this is 5 or 12 months? @builtforretail

We don't have the right local business ecosystem. Need to find new models @bruce_katz

Do we need war bonds #covid19bonds? @Mark_Downtown

Challenge to go from vacancy to vibrancy...issue in Calgary. How do you pull people into the downtown. Transit yes, but digital so critical @maryhmoran

Calgary trying to retrain engineers who had worked in oil to digital industry. But let's not blow our brains out in respond...need to get to rebuild @maryhmoran

Political alignment, structure and leadership -- now is the time to act @maryhmoran