In the classic Martin Scorsese film Taxi Driver, the main character Travis Bickle, played by Robert De Niro, refers to himself as “God’s Lonely Man.” This description is decidedly apropos as he embodies the modern isolation of a city imploding. Bickle shifts from a loner sociopath to ironic vigilante hero while we watch him navigate through the city. Bickle muses, “someday a real rain will come and wash the scum off the streets.”

This story arc may serve as a back drop for a potential shift to “wash away” the stereotypes about cab drivers and explore new ways they may represent their cities.

Recently, techno marketer Matt Dickman gave a social media presentation in Sun Valley at the Idaho Conference on Recreation and Tourism. He made an observation that Boise city’s cab drivers are the frontline in setting the tone of whether the city is not only a good place to visit, but a good place to call home. Unfortunately, Matt’s experience wasn’t so positive as his cab driver lamented Boise’s growth and California ex-patriots who have put down roots in the Boise valley.

While Matt’s experience after this was much more rewarding, it was still the disgruntled-cab-driver introduction to the city that he remembered. It’s interesting that a cab driver, whose very livelihood depends on a city and its culture and tourism, would defame the source of his living.

In contrast, I had the much different welcome to Boise as I recently returned from a weekend workshop on Science and Meditation at the Upaya Zen Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The late Sunday evening flight demanded that I grab a cab.

My Boise City Cab driver (whose name I can’t remember), related to me that he used to be a Truck Driver and recently made the switch to driving cab after the birth of his daughter. Being a truck driver gave him only two days a month at home and he didn’t feel that this was the relationship he wanted with his daughter.

The truck driving experience also gave him an idea of what life would be for his family and him when living in any of the 40-plus states that he passed through. He chose Boise as his home. “Boise is the kind of place that you can feel safe walking home at three in the morning,” he told me. “At the same time, Boise is also the kind of place that you would have a good reason to be out at three in the morning.” He elaborated that the city is a fun place and at the same time, a neighborly place.

I think this is an accurate take on Boise. Having just moved to Boise myself three years ago, I can relate to this cab driver. Boise has got that perfect blend of comfort and activity. It’s a thriving community whose downtown is swaddled by a river with miles of parks and foothills with endless trails to explore. You see this when the weather gets warm and Boise comes to life with cyclists on bikes of all shapes and sizes. The nightlife also starts thumping, and the downtown streets remind you of the hipper districts of bigger cities. There’s a lot to do and you feel safe and comfortable doing it.

This brings to mind an opportunity that Matt Dickman noted: a city should do more with cab drivers to give them the tools to properly present their city to tourists and most importantly, business travelers. There is great potential in having cab drivers understand everything the city has to offer and, at the same time, speak freely about their hometown.

Highlighting this opportunity is the current dilemma in the Boise cab industry with so many privately-owned cab companies. An article in the May 21, 2008 issue of Boise Weekly stated that there were 150 different licensed cab companies in Boise. At that time, this was more cabs per capita than Seattle or Portland. My Boise City cab driver related to me that there maybe much more cabs on the road this year.

Don’t get me wrong. I love taxis and cab drivers. Maybe this environment is setting itself up for some intense competition, more regulation, and most of all, some innovation. This could be an opportunity for an enterprising Cab company to kick up customer service and evolve their driver or drivers into brand ambassadors for Boise and Idaho.

It’s not about making cab drivers into one-dimensional pitchmen, but insiders who give the local take on the great things to do here. Then, maybe the industry can evolve from providing mere transportation to supporting and championing a growing city.

— Sean D. Young

Labels: pacific northwest lifestyle

Labels: Boise, Boise business, Boise startups, business churn, innovation, oise Mayor, pacific northwest lifestyle

It's always considered to be quite a coup for a public relations professional to place a story in The New York Times.

We started working on a story for Arnold Aviation in Cascade, Idaho, in early April when the U.S. Postal Service announced that it was going to terminate the air taxi's $46,000 annual contract as of the end of June.

I sent out a news release about this unfortunate turn of events, and it launched a great deal of media coverage in Idaho and the Pacific Northwest in no time at all. I wrote the news release much like I would have written the story for the New York Times when I wrote for them on a regular basis as a freelancer in the 1990s, and it found plenty of traction.

The story in the Saturday issue of the New York Times was well-done. It includes a slide show of some beautiful pictures of the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness and the sea of mountains in Central Idaho.

Happily, this story had a good ending after many people complained, and Idaho's congressional delegation put the pressure on the Postal Service to retain Arnold's contract. Sometimes, the system works. - SS

Labels: Arnold Aviation, backcountry mail service, Idaho, Idaho backcountry, Idaho wilderness, pacific northwest lifestyle, Public Relations

Labels: Boise, Boise Streetcar, pacific northwest lifestyle, smart growth, urban planning

Boise Idaho's Christophe Guigon was featured a few nights ago on FOX 12 News for his innovative and creative use of used materials. Basically, he makes really cool things out of non-biodegradable materials that would otherwise end up in the landfill. Several pieces Christophe has made adorn Drake Cooper, including two conference tables, cubicle dividers, wall dividers, art displays, and a kitchen table made of our old es/drake sign. So if you have some old stuff lying around and want some new stuff, give Christophe a shout. For the complete FOX 12 story, view the video below.

Labels: pacific northwest lifestyle

Yesterday, Caldwell business and civic leaders laid out their vision to position Canyon County as one of the Northwest’s most significant wine-producing tourism regions. According to Mike Butts at the Idaho Press Tribune, "Officials made several announcements about developments in the county’s vineyard and winery region during a press conference at the Caldwell downtown gazebo in front of the newly-restored Indian Creek. "

It’s great to see the Idaho Wine Commission and Caldwell/Canyon County getting more aggressive in their approach to position Southwest Idaho’s Snake River Valley as a unique wine-growing region and leading tourist destination. This is great news for state tourism and sets the wheels in motion for the Snake River Valley wine country to become one of Idaho's next great attractions.

Labels: pacific northwest lifestyle, travel and tourism