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Thursday, January 23, 2003

By Dan Fitzpatrick, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

Carnegie Mellon University professor Richard Florida gained national attention last year with the publication of his bestseller, "The Rise of the Creative Class."

Now, Florida is attracting attention of a different kind -- from out-of-town universities and foundations interested in helping him launch a research institute. The proposed think tank, referred to as the "Center for Creativity and Innovation," would continue the work started in Florida's book, where he concludes that the country's truly diverse, tolerant and authentic cities are luring the mobile, creative workers that can help a city achieve economic success.

As Florida envisions it, the center could function with $5 million to $6 million and five people, along with the appropriate amount of office space to conduct research. Over time, he said, it may need $10 million to $25 million.

His first choice is to launch the center at CMU, where the 45-year-old economic development professor has worked for the last 15 years, and work out some type of joint arrangement between CMU's Heinz School of Public Policy and the Brookings Institution, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank. Florida is already discussing a deal that would make him a "visiting fellow" at Brookings, spending some of his time in the nation's capital and some in Pittsburgh.

But Florida's idea of a new institute devoted to the issues of the "creative class" is also finding receptive audiences in places such as Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Toronto, prompting thoughts that Florida, who has been critical of Pittsburgh for not fully embracing creativity and dissent, may have to go elsewhere to complete his work. Among those interested in the institute, according to Florida, are the University of Toronto, the New School University in New York, officials with the administration of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the Gates Foundation, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and investors in Chicago and Los Angeles.

Florida described most of the interest from universities and foundations as "breezy conversations" and said he has no offers in hand. But the University of Toronto "has expressed an interest in hiring me" and the Kauffman Foundation talked to Florida about providing as much as $1 million in seed money and having Florida move to Kansas City, Mo., which Florida does not want to do.

"I am not saying I am trying to leave," Florida said, but "why are my ideas getting more of a market in other cities? CMU may decide this is not worth their investment. Does CMU and the local community want this?"

Florida's boss, CMU Heinz School Dean Jeffrey Hunker, said, he was doing all he could to make sure "Richard is happy here in Pittsburgh and at CMU. Frankly, I am doing all I can to support him in setting up this new center for innovation." But establishing a new center can be "a torturous path," Hunker said, adding that Florida "has an exciting set of ideas. Why wouldn't we want to support this?"

As Florida describes it, the center would examine the ideas stimulated by the rise of the "creative class" and then put those ideas "into action." He believes the interests of creative workers, and their impact on American life, have sociological, psychological and economic effects that should be analyzed and addressed.

"This is what I am going to do with the rest of my life," he said.

But will he do it in Pittsburgh?

When Florida met last Friday with The Heinz Endowments' director Max King, a potential funder, Florida told King that "as he tours around the country speaking about his book he seems to get a more excited reception in other cities than he gets in Pittsburgh," according to King's recollection of the conversation.

Perhaps, King said, it is a case of the "prophet" who has no voice "in his own land. That is something legitimately for us to worry about," King said, adding that Florida "is the source of a lot of good, strong, fresh thinking.

"We should be concerned about keeping him here."

Florida, who is planning next month to discuss his proposed institute with CMU President Jared Cohon, is still sore about how his book was received in Pittsburgh -- or not received. He believes it "got national attention because the book had new ideas." In Pittsburgh, people with independent voices are not encouraged, he said. "It means no one can have an independent voice."

But that does not mean Florida will take his new institute elsewhere. "I am by no means giving up on Pittsburgh," he said.

As for the interest from other cities, "I am not going around cultivating those offers," he insisted.

All he wants, he said, is more "support and flexibility" to do his work and have "national impact. I hope in the future I can achieve that flexibility and have those resources, and that would be great if that happens here."