Equal time for the fossilized Luddites - but shouldn't Mark Seabrook be clearly identified not just as a funeral home mogul, but also as a Floyd County Commissioner?
Apart from that, the same old boilerplate: The sky is falling down; we're too stupid to learn what the rest of the world already knows; we can't possibly improve street safety for all users without compromising auto-centrism; and so on, and so forth, until the last hope for a new generation of New Albanians is squelched.
Yawn. But at least Chris Morris had a fist-pumping moment as the paragons of same-old-thinking struck back against ... against ... what, exactly?
I almost forgot: The owner of one of the businesses listed herein as opposing two-way streets already has said on Fb that he can't understand being mentioned seeing as no one asked him.
There's your Irv Stumler scientific polling methodology.
Some New Albany business owners oppose two-way street changes, by Elizabeth Beilman (News and Tribune)
NEW ALBANY — While the vocal majority seems in favor of two way street changes in New Albany, there's a faction of downtown business owners that would rather things just stay the way they are.
"I think it's going to kill traffic in downtown New Albany," Mark Seabrook, owner of Seabrook Dieckmann and Naville Funeral Homes, said.
I still maintain there will be no miraculous explosion of business downtown, there will be no sudden decrease in accidents, incidents, fender dents, any kind of dents.
ReplyDeleteCars will still have to Creep into crosswalks to see cross traffic, jaywalkers will still jaywalk and get ran over, many cyclists will continue to break the traffic regulations they need to abide by.
In the end, we'll piss away a few hundred thousand, and things will still be status quo...
(I'll be damned if there wasn't just a race in the reduced, two way spring street as I just typed this)
And I maintain that the change, while not enough to transform us into the Netherlands, nonetheless will be positive and lead to safer streets for all users, a better (walkable) business climate downtown and an uptick in property values. Nothing epochal, just an improvement. We'll see which of us is right -- if Gahan has the cojones to follow through.
ReplyDeleteHaving traveled this region extensively and visiting so many communities from Indy to the river, and Ohio to Illinois I can say with certainty that in the vast majority of cases the towns that were the most business friendly. Walker friendly, and most enjoyable was not due to infrastructure, it was attributed to the towns inhabitants.
ReplyDeleteThe ones with the cared for planters, benches, whimsical touches were the most enjoyable and have become regular stops now.
Other communities with carefully laid out grids, wide, shaded walkways, clean buildings were ghost towns with nothing to offer.
You know I have a dog in this fight for property values, as well as my first choice of supporting local businesses, I hope you're right with all my heart.
I honestly just believe the expenditures and time could have been better spent on increasing charm, better entryways to the city, and yes a massive sidewalk overhaul of the entire downtown area from east 7th all the way over to the poop plant.
Peace!