Radically Retired

Beautification Isn’t Everything

Written by

Terry

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Some years back, our then mayor and city council decided on a downtown beautification project.

It involved pouring large cement flower planters every few feet along both sides of the street in the downtown area.

Community groups, businesses, and individuals sponsor the planters, and each group purchases the flowers and plants their individual planter. The city then looks after the watering. I’m not certain who does the weeding.

The planters do indeed beautify the downtown area.

Now, our current city council is allowing downtown restaurants to add outdoor seating areas in previous parking spaces.

The issue? Parking is extremely limited, and this is a great inconvenience for both the elderly and other physically challenged people. There are parking lots at the rear of some of the main street businesses, but not all. The banks have only front street entrances, so with limited parking in front, these are a challenge, especially in the winter.

Hindsight is 20-20 and sometimes foresight is completely blind.

Comments

11 responses to “Beautification Isn’t Everything”

  1. A Creative Spirit Avatar
    A Creative Spirit

    It never ceases to amaze me our blind town planners are when it comes to parking and lack of. Our local town paved over a useful parking area, planted a couple of trees surrounded by concrete blocks and added a bench. No, thank you. The six parking spaces were far more community friendly. Yes, still plant the trees for shade but at the edge of the area.

    I do like the flowers in your downtown planters but what happens to them in the winter?

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply
    1. Terry Avatar
      Terry

      It sounds as though this issue is pretty universal, Carole. In the winter, ours are just empty cement tanks covered in snow.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
      1. A Creative Spirit Avatar
        A Creative Spirit

        at least they are full of snow and not litter 😦

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Terry Avatar
        Terry

        That’s one of many good things about our city, Carole. There’s virtually zero litter anywhere on the streets or in the many parks. Lots of community pride here.

        Like

  2. explorenewness Avatar
    explorenewness

    I totally agree. Don’t they realize the businesses would get more customers if people could actually find a place to park?!? Frustration. :o)

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    1. Terry Avatar
      Terry

      Apparently not, Lenore, and I’ve noticed on many occasions, that the outdoor seating areas are most often occupied by vagrants or old mental health clients stopping for a smoke, vs paying customers, so 🤷‍♀️.

      Like

      Reply
  3. Edward Ortiz Avatar
    Edward Ortiz

    Yeah, I hate it when towns overdo it. There are places where roads are closed to accommodate more seating and pedestrians. The problem, as you said, is parking and the people who need to walk to places like banks.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    1. Terry Avatar
      Terry

      I shake my head each time I walk by, Edward. We’re lucky because we live in easy walking distance of downtown. As long as I’m fit and able, it’s not a problem for me, but we all know that can change in a heartbeat.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
      1. Edward Ortiz Avatar
        Edward Ortiz

        Agreed. I wish some of these developers would take aging into account when coming up with new ideas, because we’re all going to reach a point when mobility becomes an issue. Happy Sunday, Terry!

        Liked by 1 person

  4. Betty Avatar
    Betty

    Perhaps there will be pushback on the parking issues. I hope so! The flowers definitely help an area look great!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    1. Terry Avatar
      Terry

      I’m guessing it would help if the citizens this affects would go to a city hall meeting to voice their concerns, but typically that doesn’t happen much here. The flowers are definitely a nice touch, Betty.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

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