200,000 Flowers and a Garden of People

 

This starts out rather strangely but it will eventually make sense. I promise. Bear with me.

Have you ever seen this mall?

No? That’s probably because it’s a photo from a mall in Colombia, South America, not the Mall in Columbia. Someone posted it with the comment that our mall would never do this.

While our mall is taking away the fountain, this is what other malls do with ‘dead’ space. We are never in the forefront of innovation.

While the fountain actually went away quite some time ago, for this person that loss still rankles. They look at this photo and see innovation. Fair enough. I see allergies and asthma. It’s all in one’s own perspective. 

I was rather surprised to see the word “innovation” pop up here. I see many, many complaints that Columbia/HoCo tries to be too much in the forefront of innovation. We even have our own innovation center, for goodness’ sake. But the original poster is probably talking about the Mall specifically. 

Is the Mall in Columbia at the forefront of innovation? Probably not. Does it even want to be? I don’t know. Don’t malls just want to stay a bit ahead of the trends and keep losses to a minimum? They’re executors, not innovators.

When I think of Malls being at the forefront of innovation I have a different vision. Frankly, I think of creative reuse. What about libraries? Schools? Affordable housing? 

That would be innovative.

Imagine my surprise when I saw this announcement last night:

From the County Executive’s Office:

 Columbia was envisioned by Jim Rouse as a “garden for the growing of people.” As we continue to advance this vision and move our community forward, Howard County Executive Calvin Ball invites you to attend an exciting announcement regarding the future of affordable housing and the new Downtown Columbia Library.

Join us at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, March 30 at the Columbia Lakefront fountain for this transformative announcement!

Okay, it has nothing to do with “The Mall”. But it has everything to do with two of the things that were top of mind for me yesterday when I looked at the Mall post: affordable housing and libraries. And, now that I think about it, our library system is continually at the forefront of innovation. I’m not at all surprised they’re a part of this. 

If you want to know more about the flower petal art, check out this article:

200,000-flower display adorns Medellín with a multisensory experience, La Prensa Latina

If you want to know what the County Executive is going to announce, you could turn up at the Lakefront at eleven. Since not everyone will be available, it will probably be shared via social media as well.

For me, a decision that will build on Rouse’s vision of “a garden for the growing of people” is every bit as breathtaking as 200,000 flowers at the Mall. I look forward to learning more.

Village Green/Town² Comments