Creating a place we want to call home

At the south end of Norris Avenue in McCook sits what I consider one of our most under-utilized, not-fully appreciated and oft-maligned assets: the Amtrak train service.

Last week, I, along with my two youngest children, hopped the train for our yearly ski trip. We boarded with another half dozen people, a few from McCook whereas others had driven to McCook, specifically to catch the train. (And yes, it was late by an hour, but it can’t be early because we would get left behind.)

While Amtrak has decreased its routes during the pandemic, McCook benefits from having this public transportation with a direct stop (plus a beautiful station with floor to ceiling windows). I realize the train is not for everyone, but it is an asset for those considering our area...one of many of our assets.

Once we reached the ski area, the topic of the train service regularly came up in conversation.

Since I was adequately spaced, along with being covered head to toe because of the pandemic and the snowy weather, I visited on the ski lifts with people from across the county.

Every single one was in awe that I had traveled there by public transportation and by train in particular, avoiding the congestion of Denver and I-70. One of them even commented - unprompted - that the ability to do these types of activities must be easier for me because of the lower cost of living. The former Chicago resident had recently moved to Boulder and admitted that housing and commuting took up large chunks of his time and money.

While the mountains are a natural draw, there are many other reasons people choose a place to move to, settle in and remain living there.

In a report from the Knight Foundation, there are three things needed to develop attachment to a place: social offerings such as spaces and businesses which encourage social gatherings; aesthetics such as physical beauty; and openness where a community is welcoming to all different types of people, ideas and opinions.

For social offerings, McCook and Southwest Nebraska have a good start with locations and businesses which encourage people to sit and share their views, from the tables at Sehnert’s Bakery to the benches in Norris Park. And with Norris Alley and the K9 Korner Dog Park in the works, hopefully, we’ll soon have even more spaces to be social.

As for aesthetics, we don’t have mountain vistas or ocean views. But we have beautiful lakes surrounding us, ample space for walking, hiking and hunting and a river which has water for kayaking and floating...part of the year.

And we aren’t lacking in man-made features either. Throughout McCook, we have beautiful architecture, from the columns of the old post office on Norris Avenue to Nebraska’s only Frank Lloyd Wright-designed home. And again, there is potential to create even more aesthetically-pleasing areas from building-sized murals to new hiking trails at Red Willow State Recreation Area.

But it is the third area where we need to make sure each and every one of us are intentional. People choose to move to a place, stay in a place or leave a place because they feel included and valued. A place must be tolerant and provide plenty of space for socializing where people feel comfortable having friendly and not-so-friendly conversations.

As social scientist and Knight Public Spaces Fellow Eric Klinenberg argues, investment in social infrastructure (including libraries and parks) is critical in revitalizing civic life and ultimately a resilient community, especially during a crisis. As our community moves forward, we have an opportunity to improve engagement, improve inclusivity, improve involvement.

This could come in many different forms. It may mean belonging to a local service organization such as Rotary or the Optimists, where people of all different views come together to make the community better. It may mean hosting a gathering to share opposing viewpoints to reach a common good. Or it may mean investing with private and public funding in those physical spaces which bring people face-to-face to share ideas rather than hiding behind a screen with their thoughts.

It is up to each and every one of us to create a place where people want to come to...and stay. We’ve got a good start, but we also have a lot of potential to make this an even better place to call home.