Report Card Time: City Of Superior Gets Community Assessment From Civic Expert

The City of Superior was just recently visited by a civic engagement expert referred to as “the Gordon Ramsey of civic pride" to do a multi-day assessment of Superior to get a sense of the health of the city and a picture of future potential.

This expert is Jeff Siegler, the founder of the civic health consulting firm Revitalize, or Die. During Siegler's three-day assessment visit to Superior, he toured the city with Mayor Jim Paine, had lunch with city councilors at Anchor Bar, checked out neighborhoods and natural amenities like Wisconsin Point, and gave a speech at a city council meeting.

In a social media post, Siegler shared his initial findings after his visit to Superior. He said the city has great potential, saying it has "incredible bones", with "everything in place to thrive". While that's a glowing review on the outside, he sees a lot of room for growth.

Among the highlights Siegler pointed to as a great foundation on which to build is the walkable neighborhoods Superior still has. He observed, "You can bike from downtown to a fishing hole or a beach, the kind of access most towns lost decades ago to sprawl."

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A significant area for growth that Siegler quickly picked up on is the large amount of unused space above storefronts in buildings in Superior's downtown area. This was a recurring theme in conversations with members of the Superior Business Improvement District (BID).

Nick Cooper - TSM Duluth

Pointing to quality space above these Superior storefronts, he says now is the time to start generating real momentum toward utilizing this space. He suggested tax incentives for building owners to renovate upper floors while also reinforcing from the other side with building code to prevent "rot" as building owners collect rent at street level while neglecting valuable space above.

The City of Superior's social media post acknowledged this as a clear opportunity for new housing and business space to help support long-term economic growth for the city.

This assessment is something I feel like most people can agree with and get behind. Now comes the hard part.

As Siegler said in his assessment social media post, what's next shouldn't just be more conversation. He urged pressure. A sense of immediacy to act on these opportunities. His assessment pointed to Superior being in a lot better place than many communities across the country.

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While enacting some of the changes necessary to spark the kind of potential growth Siegler sees in Superior's future can be difficult, he seems to think all of the tools are in place to make it a reality.