There is a reason that VCs love to invest in product people. Their creativity creates change. Sometimes they do not make the best CEO, but that is for another time.
Cities need to be rethought when it comes to housing, transportation, street-level experiences, a changing climate, and community. Who else is better to think about solutions than creatives?
In London, Sadiq Khan, the mayor, created a group of top architects to advise on sustainability and inclusivity about significant developments across the city. Obviously, Related did not do that when it came to the building of Hudson Yards. This new team in London is the next generation of city preservation commissions. Preservation commissions had zero say in Hudson Square because it came from the ground up. They only get to comment on preserving the past. Someone should be thinking about the future.
I would love to see Eric Adams do the same thing but go one step further with this team, helping the city rethink its zoning, bicycle paths, and housing. So many brilliant creative minds in NY would love their town. Put their brains to work about the future of our city with one mission each. Attempt to make it non-political and run it as a proper think tank with expected solutions. Please don’t complicate things.
There isn’t a top creative that I know who wouldn’t jump at the chance to make an impact on the city they love.