Look in the mirror, Columbia, and be honest: Do you like what you see?

Editor’s note: This is the third in a four-part opinion series.

A city’s appearance tells you a lot about what its priorities are and where it is going.

Vibrant cities have well-kept sidewalks and medians (think no weeds), well-maintained streets (think no potholes) and attractive storefronts (think no broken windows), telling visitors that its residents have pride in place. Its shops invite people to visit, and they invite visitors to stay.

At times Columbia has achieved this effect, and at times it has not.

The last time Columbia won the prestigious All-American City award from the National Civic League was 1964. For comparison, Mount Pleasant in Charleston won it in 2018, and Rock Hill in 2019.

Awards don’t mean everything, but they do tell you something.

As noted in the city’s recent comprehensive property tax study, while Greenville’s population grew by 15.7 percent, Charleston’s 12.7 percent, and Rock Hill’s by 11.7 percent since 2010, Columbia’s population grew by only 2 percent. Worse, Columbia’s population now has declined in recent years.

What’s more, the data shows the town of Lexington has been the beneficiary of Columbia’s population decline, having grown in population by 16.7 percent since 2010, faster than any of the above cities.

To win people back and encourage growth, we need a renewed sense of civic pride.

Columbia needs to focus on its gateways, especially Elmwood and Huger streets. They are our front porch, and yet neither communicate purposeful design or distinct, welcoming features.

Finlay Park is Columbia’s signature downtown greenspace, and yet does it create a favorable first impression? Does it seem safe? Would you take children there at night?

Look at our city’s most valuable corners: Gervais and Huger, Gervais and Assembly, Elmwood and Main, and Elmwood and Bull. All are under-developed, featuring vacant lots, parking lots or gas stations. They need to be prioritized as economic development targets that demonstrate our city’s success, not its shortcomings.

Certain parts of downtown Columbia’s sidewalks are well kept, but just outside the area where the Yellow Shirts patrol (think driving down Gervais Street away from The Vista), the weeds in sidewalks are impossible to miss.

So are the potholes. A serious, recurring problem that was supposed to be addressed by the Richland County penny tax back in 2012, Columbia’s legendary potholes remain a menace to vehicles and demonstrate a lack of pride in place by municipal leaders.

All these problems are fixable. Simplified landscaping requirements would make them easier to maintain. Rather than using accommodation tax dollars to expand the convention center, use those dollars instead to bury power lines, clean up and restore Finlay Park, and beautify the city.

Another innovative solution is privatizing pothole repair and citywide landscaping. Not only would the city be more beautiful, but also it would be a means to create more small business opportunities and jobs.

Things as simple as keeping street lines freshly painted matter. Good lighting matters. Weeds, potholes, neglected corners and faded lines send the wrong message, and the population trends tell us people are paying attention.

In short, instead of starting new projects, we must take care of what we have. It is a problem we no longer can afford to ignore.

Joe E. Taylor, Jr. is CEO of Park and Washington LLC and a lifelong resident of Columbia. He also served as S.C. Secretary of Commerce from February 2005 through January 2011 and led the state’s efforts to land the national economic deal of the year in 2009 and again in 2010.