Skift Take
Denver continued to promote itself as a young active city even after its marijuana legalization vote, which would make Portland the first U.S. city to turn its laid-back attitude about drugs into an official marketing campaign.
Portland is a quaint, seaside city with cobblestone streets and a working waterfront. It's known for its vibrant restaurant, music and art scenes.
Now Portland is known nationally as the first city on the East Coast to vote in favor of legalizing marijuana.
The vote was largely symbolic because state and federal prohibition laws supersede local ordinances. Proponents of the ordinance said the vote sends a strong signal to state lawmakers that marijuana should be legal.
But that message is extending far beyond Maine's borders. Portland's overwhelming support for legal marijuana has made national headlines, making marijuana part of the city's national brand.
Some individual businesses -- including a cupcake bakery in the Old Port -- are optimistic that the vote will be good for their bottom lines. Whether the image is good or bad for the city overall remains to be seen.
"Voters added a new thread to the fabric of Portland's brand," said David Goldberg, a partner at Kemp Goldberg Partners, a local advertising, public relations and marking firm.
"It's going to take time to know whether this ordinance plays out as a branding issue for the city."
Unlike a business, a city does not fully control its image or its brand, so a vote like last Tuesday
