« Previous · Home · Next »
Cincinnati is no Lexington (Thank God)
June 27, 2006 03:56 PM
Hat tip to Brian, over at Cincinnati Blog, for pointing out this article we missed in yesterday's Enquirer: a slurpy ode extolling the virtues of Lexington, Kentucky. We are sure this has nothing to do with the fact that Milton Dohoney, the Mayor's pick for City Manager, recently held the equivalent job for Lexington-Fayette County government--and the Enquirer supports Mr. Dohoney.
Apparently Enquirer staff writer Dan Klepal was dispatched to Lexington to do some extensive man-on-the-street interviews with people who really, really like it there. And what did Mr. Klepal learn? People really, really like it there!!!
Plus, Mr. Klepal reports, there are no blighted or abandoned buildings in Lexington. None! What else does Lexington have? No poverty? Perfect race relations? Streets paved with gold? Lexington: it's the Big Rock Candy Mountain!
The Enquirer even runs this photo--of downtown rooftops and a skyscraper--and captions it by saying "[n]o blighted or abandoned buildings are obvious in this view of downtown Lexington."
Well no. Our Fifth-Third building isn't abandoned either.
The Enquirer also runs a handy, dandy multimedia piece "Lexington vs. Cincinnati By the Numbers," but does not clearly point out that they are using Lexington-Fayette county statistics and comparing them to stats just for the City of Cincinnati. Hamilton County stats are NOT in the mix. Granted, this is because Lexington-Fayette has fairly unique form of municipal/county government. But it doesn't change the fact that the Enquirer is comparing apples and oranges. The demographics around here change quite a bit when Hamilton County is included. So do the political realities.
But hey, if real reporting can be accomplished by getting in the car, heading South, talking to folks in downtown Lexington, and claiming personal observations as fact, how about this:
NBS is in Lexington fairly frequently on business. The downtown is a ghost town as soon as the work day is completed. There are few good restaurants. There are no places to shop. There is zero nightlife. In fact, few places downtown are even open after the evening rush is over. And, we are fairly certain we saw at least one blighted building. There are also some lovely old homes that are very well maintained. And of course, Keeneland. But that is about it.
Presto! Instant news!
Potential comment conditions listed here. Oh, and you may use basic HTML for formatting.