Thanks to a Chicago Tribune article, we now know where the sidewalk ends. It’s in the suburbs.
Amazingly there’s more than a few people who don’t want sidewalks in their cul-de-sac’ed subdivisions. Why? People think they’re too urban.
Sidewalks. Too urban.
Worse is this quote from a fellow who is anti-sidewalk:
“There’s strange things happening in the world today, so why would we want to open up that possibility?” he said. “We are connected, we all know each other. The concern is, who knows what you’d be encouraging to come through.”
Yes… those damned sidewalk walkers! They menace everyone with their walking and their stomping! Nothing but trouble!
I think this all says a lot about the way suburbs are being built here nowadays. It’s like people are really, really trying to say, “Please, don’t let people near me. Ever. Please.” Sad stuff.
Posted in Everyday Life
COD May 10, 2007, 11:56 am
We don’t have sidewalks, or streetlights.
jk May 10, 2007, 2:28 pm
Locally, a huge multi-screen movie theater was built on some former farmland. There is literally just ONE house on the road, and when they widened the road and softened a very sharp turn, they also put in a sidewalk leading from the theater just to that house. I thought that was nice. “We built a theater in your backyard but to make you feel welcome to visit, we gave you a sidewalk!”
Monica May 10, 2007, 2:30 pm
This happens in WI too. it’s so sad. A lack of sidewalks can be one more reason parents don’t feel safe letting their kids play outside.
At least, at the time I took the poll on the article-page, 3611 voters said sidewalks were a good thing (88.9% of the vote).
Ryan May 10, 2007, 2:31 pm
That’s really odd that there’s such an uproar about sidewalks. As if not having these slabs of concrete in front of one’s house will keep people from walking around.
Now, moving sidewalks, I’d oppose those. Too much chance of slipping and falling when walking the dog.
Merle May 12, 2007, 6:54 pm
No sidewalks tells me “people aren’t welcome here and should not live here”. Which also means I have no reason to worry about dodging out into traffic or walking through peoples’ yards.
There is no way I’m not going to keep walking just because there is no sidewalk. You want pedestrians trampling your grass and flowers, fine, that’s your choice. But sidewalks are more basic than roads.