To me the most important aspect of this is how this Democratic Party machine invests its political capital. Does it defend public schools or sell land to real estate developers for private schools? Does it fire the police chief for using escalatory tactics or elbow bump him? https://twitter.com/terilussier/status/1281002221010903041

How do public officials use their platforms? Do they hold entities like the University of Dayton accountable for its dismal 3 percent black undergraduate student population? Do they silence critics and public servants like Jared Grandy or do they listen to their concerns?

Give budget priority not to over-policing, but to mental health, social services, and community engagement.

I know none of what I’m saying sounds like traditional economic development, and maybe that’s my point. If we started Dayton from zero, we wouldn’t build what we have. We’d have (hopefully) a more connected city. People without a car could get to jobs.

We’d find some policy measure to address the legacy of red-lining. We’d use the resources the city will expend on a drinking district in the Oregon to make sure families have access to fitness and other preventative health activities.

We’d advocate for a county-based school system to help break the back of the housing segregation-fueled systemic discrepancies.

This city is run by Democrats. Ostensibly they should be in favor of things that benefit grassroots Daytonians. But mostly what I see is the silencing of black critics and cheerleading for traditional gentrification-based development.

I know that private developers will chase the best tax deals. That pressure is real. They will absolutely go elsewhere. But that’s why I’m focusing so much on political and social capital.

I’m saying that if someone goes through the trouble of getting elected and gaining access to the bullhorn, I would hope they would use it in service of most of this city’s people instead of the live, work, play set.