An Incredible NIMBY Story

By Bruce Firestone | Uncategorized

Jan 03

Here’s an incredible NIMBY (not in my backyard) story from Bloomberg Businessweek.

Would you turn down a free museum from Star Wars creator George Lucas, who would not only pay for its construction, but endow it with a fund to operate it plus donate his sizable sentimentalist and narrative art collection to kick off its inventory of artifacts? 

Knowing it’s George Lucas, you would also be saying, “No” to a large technological component as well as an educational one.

It’s a chance to put your city on a galactic map of colossally successful attractions. A chance to animate your city’s economy, arts’ scene and boost its entertainment cred. 

Well, San Francisco did just that; so did Chicago and LA might follow. Huh? How come?

image

The sites Lucas selected were “too important” to be used for such a “lowbrow” museum.

The museum didn’t meet with the approval of elites who not only didn’t like its proposed collection, they detested its architecture.  

New York University

urban studies professor

Mitchell Moss apparently said, “George Lucas’s problem is that he keeps going after these premier urban sites. He needs to trade down.”

Are you kidding me? Really, that’s your best advice for a world class attraction… to “trade down”?

A few “ Friends of the Parks” got the Presidio site in San Fran scuttled… which shows you the power that a few organized NIMBY’s have in that town.

Read the full story here, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2017-01-03/george-lucas-can-t-give-his-1-5-billion-museum-away?cmpid=socialflow-twitter-businessweek&utm_content=businessweek&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social

@ profbruce @ quantum_entity

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About the Author

Bruce is an entrepreneur/real estate broker/developer/coach/urban guru/keynote speaker/Sens founder/novelist/columnist/peerless husband/dad.

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