Our new faces

Wouldn’t you just love to have a party with those 27 people?

You know the people I’m talking about – the 27 people who live in Cincinnati now who weren’t here 10 years ago.

The U.S. Census Bureau has admitted to a big “oops” as far as the Queen City is concerned. Instead of losing population faster than any major U.S. city, the bureau now estimates they undercounted us by about 22,000, putting us 27 up from where we were at the last census. So much for all that “woe-is-we-this-isn’t-a-fit-place-to-live-hole-in-the-doughnut” talk we (including the Editorial Board) has been engaging in. We are actually a growing place!

Twenty-seven people! That’s enough for a baseball game with three teams. You could have a decent-sized cocktail party with 27 people.

OK – 27 people isn’t a big number – nowhere near big enough to grow complacent about the problems the city has. But it is a start and we should celebrate that we are a city on the rise.

I propose we turn this over to a joint task force of 3CDC, the Chamber of Commerce and the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau. Find these 27 people – people who have made the choice to move to Cincinnati despite all of our self-described problems. These are people who have had faith in this community. Once the 27 willing newcomers have been gathered, take their pictures and put them on the giant TV overlooking Fountain Square. These are the new faces of Cincinnati.

Anybody else want to host a party for these folks? We should all get to know them.