Curt Schilling: Hall of Famer?- Hollywood at the Corner of Division Street and Quaker Lane - Helping Our Clients Also Means Helping Their Partners - Another Rhode Island Success Story
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Greetings!
Every election teaches new lessons. There's lessons about campaigning, our state, our country and lessons about Americans as a people. With Tuesday's results behind us, I posted some thoughts on our blog about what lessons we can take from Tuesday's results. I hope you will take a look.
Also - the acronym NIMBY (Not in My Backyard) can mean big trouble for many businesses. Don't believe me? Take a look at a local company whose neighbors put them out of business - and one of our clients from Newport that prevailed against the NIMBYs.
Best,
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Your Neighbors Can Put You
Out of Business
|  There it was - on the front page of paper above the fold: "Neighbors Rejoice as Firm Closes."
We had worked with the company about 10 years ago when the original owners got off to a rocky start by failing to define themselves on their own terms against blistering opposition from a handful of neighbors. We were able to help them right the ship and grow the business.
The company was a leader in local recycling efforts designed to reduce pressure on the state landfill. In the complete absence of any scientific evidence that the firm was a problem state regulators consistently gave the company a clean bill of health. They also approved the firm's applications to increase their daily flow from the original 150 tons of debris a day, eventually to ten times that amount.
But it didn't matter. When the new owners decided to save a few bucks, they lost the communications battle, and ultimately, the entire war. The neighbors, meanwhile, relentlessly filled the vacuum with their side of the story. Local elected officials had no choice but to respond to what they perceived to be overwhelming opposition from the community to the company's very existence.
With the right climate in place, laws targeting the firm were passed, lawsuits were filed and the inevitable end was realized. Ultimately, the neighbors rejoiced. And 85 people lost their jobs. |
| A Happy Ending |
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NIMBY Armageddon
in Queen Anne Square?
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Meanwhile, there was recently a happier ending in Newport. There, we worked with the Doris Duke Monument Foundation (DDMF) to gain final approval of a memorial for the well-known philanthropist in the City's Queen Anne Square. The group has commissioned the world-renowned Maya Lin, who designed the Vietnam Memorial in our nation's capital, for the project. Despite the fact that the private foundation was underwriting all the present and future costs of the memorial a small, vocal and committed group opposed the project. The tone and tenor of the group's approach is probably best reflected by their Facebook page (click here) - a NIMBY classic. (The 14 "Likes" on the page are probably as good an indicator as any of the opposition's true numbers.) But with the project enjoying the support of the vast majority of the community and well understood by the decision-makers involved, construction is now officially underway. Completion is set for Spring 2013. |
| | Funny is Better
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1992 "Dream Team"
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Public humor, particularly irony, can be volatile, but a light touch can go a long way - both for your argument and for your brand. Prior to the Olympics there was some discussion about whether this year's batch of NBA All Stars on the U.S. Olympic basketball team was better than the 1992 "Dream Team".
Hall of Famer Earvin "Magic" Johnson laid down the factual case for the '92 squad on Twitter:
@MagicJohnson: The 1992 Dream Team had 11 HOFs, 23 champ rings & the greatest player of all time in Jordan. No chance this years team would take us.
Celtics great Larry Bird struck the just the right note, and sealed the argument, with this lighter observation about who would win a hypothetical matchup: "They probably could. I haven't played in 20 years and we're all old now."
(Note: "HOF" means "Hall of Famer".)
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