...city officials, generally speaking, are not visionaries. Although their most important role is to safeguard history and nourish a distinct sense of place, they're like heroin addicts when it comes to retail.

They'll bulldoze the past, raffle off the last precious parcel of open space and build parking garages over their mothers' graves for a quick hit of sales tax revenue.

Yes, the Grove is better than a boxy indoor mall. Yes, people of all shapes and colors come together at the wildly popular Grove and seem to have a good time. And Caruso has every right to build fake urban settings and profit like a bandit.