I am one of the most positive persons you will ever meet. My middle name, it is joked, must be Pollyanna. I am particularly positive about Buffalo and spend much of my time (pro bono) shouting about Buffalo as a Great Place to Live. And it is.

But it can always be better. The resurgence is clearly concentrated in certain pockets of the city, and is failing to reach large swaths of our community. Rising tides ought to raise all boats, but care must be taken to ensure that this is really the case.

Community activists and young preservationists Chris Hawley, Bernice Radle and Dana Saylor took off for Pittsburgh to understand first hand its path from rust belt rundown to a vibrant urban mecca for millennials. In From Pittsburgh with tough love: Buffalo can do better, by Colin Dabkowski in The Buffalo News on June 13, they issue warnings and offer suggestions for Buffalo in its pursuit of the same metamorphosis.

"Buffalo is locked in a cutthroat competition with its Rust Belt neighbors for millennial residents, and it is losing...Buffalo cannot rest on the creature comforts of craft breweries, new restaurants, bike lanes, rehabbed buildings or its newly popular waterfront."

"To beat out Pittsburgh and Detroit in the hunt for young residents, the city must focus instead on what makes it singular among its competitors: A second skyline of hulking grain elevators, a diverse creative culture, a burgeoning tech startup scene and – believe it or not – a reputation for harsh weather."

This is an interesting perspective on our fair city. The bottom line? "It’s possible to celebrate how far we’ve come while recognizing that we still have a long way to go."

Thanks to Hawley, Radle, Saylor and the passionate, proactive group of community activists that is taking the time to shape and guide the resurgence.