Reading Adam Nossiter's "New Orleans Journal" this morning in the New York Times, I was struck again about the elements of a city that make people call it home.

Attempting to explain the importance of the return of "the distinctly urban noise of grinding wheels and brakes" of the St. Charles streetcar line, one rider told Nossiter, "The streetcar is not just something convenient. Sometimes, I think I'm in the salotto [Italian for parlor] of my house."

Nossiter writes, "Like other elements that have struggled to come back, this one -- in the telling of the riders, at least -- has an intimate connection with the biographies of everyone who is asked about it."

"In other places, citizens move on, leaving the historic artifacts people here believe make up the urban fabric. The ties are personal."

Sometimes, it is hard to sort out the history worth preserving and when it's time to move on. But knowing the difference will become a necessary skill for urban leaders attempting to cement footloose citizens in place.

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