Nelson: Plop-Art Plopping! (Part 1)

How It's Done!
When Bilbao, Basque Country (Spain) - not known for much and not really a must-see on most tourists' itinerary - decides to rejuvenate, reinvent itself, it starts on/with some dilapidated, largely bygone river-front property.
And puts a very high-brow, nowhere near the local mindset and very expensive museum there. The Guggenheim. Breathtakingly audacious in design by Frank Gehry, a Canadian-American way-out-of-the-box architect: definitely not safe! - and simply unthinkable in that location in that city - it is an immediate hit, quickly to be called one of the world's best pieces of modern architecture just like that!

 

Opening in 1997, it attracts close to 4 million visitors from all over the globe in its first 3 years - generating about 500 million euros in museum-connected transactions. This - with hotels, restaurants, shops, transportation and other tourism-related services - translates into roughly 100 million euros in taxes. Which more than cover construction-costs of the museum. In 3 years!

Totally blown away by what this single building does for the city - individuals there step-up with: I want some of it - and I CAN make it happen! Bilbao as a whole blossoms.

And this process has become known internationally as the Bilbao-effect.

                                                                    

How It Could Be Done!

Now imagine we were doing something like that in Nelson - smaller all-around but with similar intent. And audacious!

And that goes like this: When the Co-op buys the Extra-property - for a little while it floats a multifacet vision for this centrally located piece of also bygone - to possibly inject much-needed life-force into Nelson and area. This vision getting many people hooked.

The property is bought too hastily - based on looking-for-a-larger-space-and-not-finding-it fatigue. It is too large and too expensive for practical purposes: only a roomier store. The life-force swoon promptly quashed, Sunday morning coming down: how to pay for the lot! Fear of this so strong that pursuing/developing the vision: starting with the store and adding component after component over time - is not an option. Big-time debt-relief becomes the sole motivator. And big-time money must roll in immediately - the store alone won't do that!

So instead of co-opping with the membership and City Hall over this possible benefit-for-all vision - it is unilaterally dropped by management and replaced with a single condo-block: totally without forward-propelling Nelson-context, devoid of individuality, little aesthetic value but with loudly echoing dissonance locally. 

And absolutely no consequence to the tourism-dollar.

 

In a parallel reality, there's City Hall with its unarticulated low-voltage desire to be bigger and better - but not knowing how. Usually not coming from Nelson's economic need. If coming at all. And then not based on over time accumulated - and promptly disregarded - expensive outside-consultant-produced remedies for what may ail or be missing. 

One thing though clear to City Hall, even on its own - generally a plodding, insensitive and uncreative lot: this property's location as the potential heart of Nelson. In an odd twist-maybe-not - because of a lack of creativity finding nothing with which to substantiate its own existence - aside from the winter-angle - the City consistently flogs creativity-as-such in bits and pieces as the big Nelson-thing. Only. Go figure! 

These bits and pieces only the overall topic of Part 2, following shortly and next.

So there could have been a marriage made in heaven: The supposedly somewhat more aware Co-op with location-location-location, a vague vision and needing someone to have its back in actualizing it. Coupling with the City - looking for a similar vision to manifest thus get itself on the map in a big way.

Both: at the heart of the matter.

How It Should Be Done!

This is not to compare Nelson to Bilbao - but the dynamics could be the same: here creating an exceptionally attractive multifunctional complex - not only to bring locals together - morning to late evening - but tourists to Nelson as a destination, not just a stop-over. This stimulating locals' aspirations: growth thus more money - investment and taxes - entering the local economy. Nelson getting there!

 

How It's Not Done!

But the Co-op - now frightened by real-estate-development vagaries of its own making and stuck down the rabbit-hole - is not ready to talk to anyone but itself - not even those with similar interests.

And Council - never known as a group of individual voices to begin with and now fitfully snoozing towards the next election - have been in a holding-pattern on this opportunity and totally ready to sign-off on the condo-thing - warts and all - when given the signal.

Clearly - Nelson is not ready for its Gehry-moment. Still not realizing a basic fact: To make money - you spend money first! Called investing in your future.

While with Co-op and City acknowledging need, followed by willingness and inspiration - a confluence could have presented Nelson with its own Bilbao-effect. 

Could have would have.

Now probably never will!

Part 2 - getting down to plop-art plopping - will give an overview, with examples of City Hall - its Cultural Development Committee in charge of absolutely everything - in an ungainly shamble towards Nelson's future whatever.

Without a heart!

To be continued

All images are of Frank Gehry's work