Thursday, March 31, 2011

Crazy Little Thing Called Government

“Frankly, it’s none of my business.”
William Sweeney, Retired Bedford Circuit Court Judge

Bottoms Up
It's called “Bottom-Up,” and it’s one of those ideas that makes so much sense it’s hard to believe a bureaucrat came up with it. In Colorado, the governor’s office is turning the balance of power on its head and asking local leaders what they think should be done to grow businesses at the community level. And the first thing the state wants to know is: what can we do to get out of the way of your growth? Recognizing that small businesses generate 65 percent of the new jobs in Colorado, the state is willing to throw out the playbook and let communities set their own agendas. A tip of the hat to the folks in Colorado.
Bedford, Virginia (population 6,312) boasts a sign proclaiming it’s the “World’s Best Little Town,” but Bedford isn’t a town at all, as it turns out. It’s a city. But it hasn’t always been a city, either. In fact, it didn’t always go by the name of Bedford. Let me back up . . . In 1782 the town was founded as Liberty, Virginia, and somewhere along the way became the town of Bedford. In the 1960s it decided it was a good idea to become a city and in the 1990s toyed with the idea of becoming a shire. Now the city has come full circle and decided it wants to be a town after all—maybe. The city council has been studying the idea for three years and says a decision should be coming soon.

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