The Creative Class Wants its Trains, Everywhere They Go

Today's Minneapolis Star Tribune carries an opinion piece from the epitome of the Creative Class.  She represents the very type of person that city planners are trying to attract (or to retain) to our fair burg.  This is how she describes herself,

• Parents live in the "desolate" suburbs of Minneapolis
• Graduated from college last year
• Moved to Munich, Germany

Since abandoning this "colder" and "foreboding" land (her words), she has acquired all the accoutrement needed of a Creative Class member,

• Works at a "hip" marketing firm
• Has "international" friends
• Doesn't own a car
• Lives is a "teeny-tiny" Munich apartment
• Likes to ride Munich's subway

Munich, population density of 12,470/sq. mi., and Minneapolis, population density of 6,722/sq. mi., are very different places.  In addition to having a core city twice as dense as ours, Munich has a metro population of 6 million, twice the size of our 3 million.

Regardless, this young woman believes that Minneapolis should have a subway system, based on her struggles navigating our inadequate bus and light rail network.

Key passage,

"Basically, you can trust the government [in Munich] to get you where you want to be.  It's not why I moved there, but it's why I stayed.  I've seen Munich attract plenty of other young people."

Good thing that, because Germany is among a handful of countries (mostly European) whose population is actually declining.

Nonetheless, she never makes clear whether installing a subway in Minneapolis would be enough to tempt her back to live again amongst us rubes in flyover country.  I'm sure that she is grateful to the taxpayers of the Federal Republic of Germany and its Free State of Bavaria for subsidizing her carefree lifestyle.  She writes,

"I wouldn't be nearly as successful in Munich if I had to make monthly car and insurance payments, if I had to navigate foreign streets as well as a foreign language."

And she would be grateful if we made such transit options available here, for her occasional visits.

Perhaps I'm biased, as my German ancestors were wagon makers.  But my advice to her?  Next time you visit your parents, rent a car.