Sequence Development

I got to spend some time with the Joe Masher this week leading up to today’s big day, the official opening day for Huck Finn's Playland!

Joe is the type of person we need in this area. Committed to the things he cares about, willing to take outrageous chances, and bringing a keen eye to the idea of entertainment and engagement.

I’m mixing in a little of the Knowhere Collaborative chaos by hiding a QR code in the park this weekend. For those with kids and grandchildren, the season begins at 10 a.m today!

I look across the room at Keila Dos Santos and say…

“If we aren’t having fun, we are on the wrong path.”

I also say… “We are going to be able to give a master class on how not to start a company.”

And so it begins.

Friends, colleague, lurkers, and haters…

I’m thrilled to announce today the creation of Knowhere Collaborative.

The what?

Let me state a truth I see.

We are stuck in a post-Covid doom loop that is threatening all the strides we have made in our cities. Stuck. That’s the right word. And we need to unstuck it.

This idea has been kicking around my head for nearly a decade now.

There are three guiding principles for Knowhere. And three main sectors to partner with.

First the sectors: (very) small businesses, non-profits, and cities. That’s right. I’m starting a marketing firm with intended clients that don’t have marketing budgets. Brilliant.

And the principles:

- Encourage
- Engage
- Entertain

Sooo… what are you doing Jeff?

As my friendHeidi Knoblauch said last week…

“You want to catalyze the chaos.”

It was a statement. Not a question.

In the coming weeks, we will roll out a bunch of initiatives that are all based in one single theory. Get people back into the real world again, let’s find some space to love and cherish life, and let’s stop focusing on all the doom and gloom.

Let’s have some fun.

Will it work?

You know, I have no idea.

Which is why I chose this picture. It’s my favorite piece of graffiti inside Central Warehouse, a building I convinced a bunch people to buy in hopes of solving one of our region’s most obvious problems. I had big dreams for that thing. They will not come to fruition. But you know what will? The solving of the problem. The building will come down. The nightmare over.

The lesson?

You can’t solve problems unless you try.

This is a call to action. To anyone that wants to make this tiny part of the world a better place to be. We are assembling a team to do just that. In the coming weeks, you’ll see the basis for how we do it, but the intention is to grow and grow until we reach the inflection point of optimists outweighing the pessimists. Here. This place.

Welcome to Knowhere Collaborative.

When I think back on my aspirations from 25 years ago or so, they weren’t very high. I never studied. Didn’t work hard. Wasted a lot of time. I thought I’d go to college, find a job and settle down.

I was a late bloomer. Never did find a job or settle down.

Life has a way of changing on you. I bought my high school last week. It’ll take a year or so to convert into its next life as a new community where people can live and work and play. All things I’ve already done here.

A $15 million investment in a neighborhood that does not get enough of that love.

Stay tuned…

This beauty is ready for your personal touches!

Luxury unit in freshly renovated boutique building! You will love coming home to this amazing escape in the heart of Downtown Schenectady. Located in a freshly renovated boutique apartment building with incredible historic details. This two bedroom,...

This door though....

In doing some historic research today for another pending project in Schenectady, we came across the original listing from the 1912 code book, when the Schenectady Railway company applied for their building permit! Interesting to see that the original estimated cost to build it in 1912 was $90,000 - that about $2.2 million today!