Doug Griffiths urges local ownership to revive downtowns and community life
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Summary
At a Community Foundation event, keynote speaker Doug Griffiths urged residents to "own" community revitalization, citing Main Street beautification, childcare as economic development, and cooperative local projects; the foundation also announced Project Connect mini-grants are open for applications.
Mindy Ruhle, president and CEO of the Community Foundation of South Puget Sound, opened a community conversation Wednesday evening and announced that the second year of the foundation's Project Connect mini-grants program has opened for applications. She introduced Doug Griffiths, a former Alberta legislator and author, who delivered the keynote address on local action to rebuild connection and economic vitality.
Griffiths framed the talk around generational change and the practical choices that shape community futures. He traced how postwar suburbanization hollowed out downtowns and third places, making it harder for people to socialize and for small businesses to thrive. "If your community doesn't look like you love it, then why would anybody else?" he said, arguing that visible pride, aesthetic improvements and experience-driven events help attract investment and visitors.
The keynote emphasized small, community-led steps. Griffiths urged communities to start with simple projects volunteers can complete quickly, rather than waiting for large grants. He described a town that added daycare capacity to a new school and then saw housing demand and local economic activity grow, using it as a model of nonpartisan, practical development.
Griffiths also recommended local cooperation among businesses and neighboring towns''1cooperation he called "coopetition"''1to grow the pie for everyone. He cited examples from Canada and Ontario where pooling marketing and shared investments attracted visitors and economic activity.
On inclusion and history, he said communities must confront "ugly truths" in their pasts if they want to rebuild trust and broaden participation. He stressed accessibility and inclusive planning, saying exclusion is often caused by ignorance rather than intentional malice and that good design must welcome newcomers, including people with disabilities.
In a wider point about agency, Griffiths told the audience, "There is no one coming to save your community," urging residents to take responsibility for incremental change rather than seeking a top-down revolution. He closed by inviting questions and remained for a broad Q&A that addressed gentrification, cohousing, youth engagement and homelessness.
The Community Foundation highlighted Project Connect as a local funding mechanism intended to seed neighborhood-level efforts. Ruhle closed the event by directing attendees to application details and noting a local book signing with Griffiths after the program.