"Everybody's talking about smart growth, but nobody is talking about smart decline,"

An Advocate reader sent to me a pretty interesting read. One example Youngstown, Ohio, the population, now about 83,000, is less than half what it was when the steel industry collapsed in the 1970s. Richmond is another example of positive restructuring.

Only faint traces remain of the old glamour of Richmond's Jackson Ward district. The marquee is fading on the Hippodrome Theater, where Bill "Bojangles" Robinson danced, Ella Fitzgerald sang and Duke Ellington played. There are few businesses in the 40-square-block neighborhood once called the Wall Street of Black America because of its many banks.

Today, however, there are signs of a rebound. Historic row houses have been refurbished. Restaurants are opening. New homes are going up near a statue of "Bojangles." Shells of Greek and Georgian Revival, Queen Anne and Italianate houses, many adorned with elaborate ironwork and cast-iron porches, could be had for $30,000 to $40,000 10 years ago. They're selling for more than $250,000 today. Fix Buffalo Today Has a related story and link to an interview with Youngtown's Mayor.