Editorial: How to Kill a Good Town (Revisited)

For the past ten-and-a-half years I've seen Lincoln move from a town stuck in an economic rut to one that began to take control of its own destiny. The successful development of Blackfoot Pathways: Sculpture in the Wild showed Lincoln can do something new and unexpected and be more than just "stinkin' drinkin' Lincoln."

People began look at ways to grow the economy beyond that, without making too many drastic changes to the community. Discussions that had been going on locally behind the scenes for years grew new legs, and organizations with money to invest in rural communities started to notice Lincoln.

Today, Lincoln boasts an international sculpture park, a community river park, a well-designed skate park, the beginnings of an in-town trail plan, the start of a downtown Master Plan and a proposed piece of federal legislation that can help change the status quo in the forests around town and give Lincoln some say in its future. There's even a locally driven economic development framework ready to be built upon, if people could get past the name Envision Lincoln.

Unfortunately, it has begun to feel recently like Lincoln is sliding back into that stagnant old rut. Efforts to make improvements to the community and its economy are met with misunderstanding, mischaracterizations and even outright conspiracy theories spread around on Facebook. The Lincoln Valley Chamber of Commerce and Envision Lincoln are accused of trying to "turn Lincoln into Whitefish."

(Reality check: Lincoln can never become another Whitefish. Lincoln is surrounded by National Forest and conservation easements. There just isn't room for endless McMansion subdivisions. And in case you missed it, we don't have a ski hill in our back yard. Nor golf courses. nor a big ol' a lake. Nor one of the county's most scenic National Parks right next door. A few streetlights, some traffic calming and a little beautification of Main Street ain't gonna change any of that.)

The Lincoln Valley Chamber of Commerce seems to have borne the brunt of that backlash and is now on the cusp of collapse. Ironically, the Master Plan is the one thing the LVCC should have taken the lead on, since one of its main goals is to improve the conditions for local businesses. Instead it has apparently helped fuel the chamber's decline, along with the general lack of interest in volunteerism and the belief the LVCC doesn't do anything for local businesses.

And for some reason, the Chamber has never really been able to get past a largely unearned bad reputation dating back several decades, despite the efforts of all the different board members who have worked diligently in the last several years to rebuild its reputation. True, at times there were missteps by past directors that led to the loss of member businesses, but with only two directors left who have only been on the board for a couple years, It should be clear the people who made those mistakes are no longer involved.

Over the years, the LVCC sought ways to bring more visitors to town, to support local businesses. But it was eventually locked into a vicious cycle of event planning and serving as a donation source for other projects and organizations, rather than developing a more holistic approach to promote the local business community.

Some people argue it's time to let the LVCC die, to be replaced with something else. I disagree. Created in the late 1960's at a time Lincoln was expecting a major mining boom, it's been the one of most enduring institutions in the valley. Chucking it on Lincoln's trash heap of history seems neither right nor necessary. We could come up with some new business organization with similar goals. Maybe call it the Upper Blackfoot Valley Chamber of Commerce instead. But that seems like little more than just a complicated way to come up with a new name. And would it be any different in the long run if the businesses it's supposed to support don't support it?

Maybe our business community could put a little effort into forgetting the past rumors and hurt feelings and rebuild the existing Chamber of Commerce into something that works for them. After all, it isn't the board of directors that make up an organization, it's the members The board may make decisions for the organizations, but they need input from members to help make the right ones. Without that, they make decisions in a vacuum and end up feeling like they're shouldering all the responsibility and taking all the blame.

Ten years ago, as I was exploring the files of our newly acquired business, I came across an uncredited article called "How to Kill a Good Town." At first, I thought it was just a bit of humor. Then I realized it wasn't that funny after all. I ran it as part of my first editorial about the LVCC back in 2012, but what it applies to is far more than a single organization.

At the time, I asked readers to decide if it's humorous or not. What do you think?

"How to Kill a Good Town"

Never attend any of the meetings called for the good of the town. If you do, don't have anything to say. Wait until you get outside and then cuss those who made suggestions. Find fault with everything that was done.

Get all the town will give you, and don't give anything in return.

Never accept an office. It's easier to criticize than to do things.

Don't do anything more than you have to. When others willingly and unselfishly give their time to make a better town, howl because the town is run by a clique.

Look at every proposition in a selfish way. If you are not the one who gets the most out of it, vote against it. Never consider what it will do for the town as a whole.

If you have good town leaders, don't follow them. Take a jealous attitude and talk about everything they do.

Don't work on any committee. Tell them "I'm too busy."

Don't pay taxes. Let the other fellow pay his , then fuss because the streets aren't kept up.

Don't do anything for the youth of the town. Criticize them as potential delinquents. Keep your feet on them.

Above all, don't support your local retail stores and businesses, but if you need a donation, ask them for it and then raise Cain if they do not see fit to donate. Expect them to back you, but don't back them.