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Same old stuff!
The newest contributor to the Delta Optimist Community Comment segment, Sylvia Bishop, does an excellent job of illustrating the status quo thinking that has become the hallmark of South Delta. Her limited understanding of the issues surrounding land use in our community perpetuates the "Nimby" sensibility that she is trying to dispell.
If Sylvia and people like her spent as much time learning about agricultural urbanism as they did banging the deadbeat drum of yesteryear our town would be a much better place to live than it is now and our friends and neighbours would be able to enjoy their complete life cycle right here without having to move to Surrey or points east.
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Thanks for that "guest'. Maybe we can go out and do some buddy stuff together?
If anyone knows about spewing in the Optimist it's you buddy.
Thanks for the explanation Peter! I am going to post this on the Southlands site as well.
I hope that Ed Ries and others will better understand what is being discusesd here.
Mike
" The Long and Winding Road.."
Some clarifications to "Skinny Streets" :
1. Properly designed Skinny Streets do not impact the traffic volumes of those streets. They enhance safety, provide better pedestrian environments and create less negative environmental impacts. By eliminating many acres of relentless asphalt, the also preserve valuable farmland and/or provide more space for parks.
2. Community Collector Roads like 56th Street have to be treated differently from the Community Roads but they can also be significantly improved - without reducing and in fact often increasing volume throughput.
3. Skinny Streets by definition place pedestrians and neighbourhoods - and the safety of our children - ahead of the automobile. By their design, they maintain volumes; slow traffic to 35 km; and they help create attractive, liveable neighbourhoods.
4. The acres of asphalt saved do not go into increased density and more houses. On the Nanaimo project it went directly into preserving valuable natural features - like saving stands of Arbutus and Garry Oaks - and preserving watercourses. All of the 'saved land from the 40% reduction in paving ' went into community Amenity spaces in the form of Parks and Natural areas.
5. Arguably the most popular area in Tsawwassen - Beach Grove - has a 'form' of Skinny Streets. People love the area; real estate values are good; kids play safely on the streets; neighbours interact and cars 'naturally' drive at a maximum of 35 km. Our notion of Skinny Streets looks to enhance and improve on thses notions to create livable neighbourhoods.
6. Skinny Streets are only one part of a comprehensive approach to Greener, more sustainable, community design.
7. Finally, Skinny Streets create a safer environment for bicycles by reducing the dangerous interface conflicts of parked cars and unpredictable opening doors.
Skinny streets are part of an overall qualitative reconsideration of how we build our communities. The goal is to enhance the livability of our neighbourhoods while fully and effectively addressing the needs of vehicles.
56th Street is a thoroughly unpleasant environment for pedestrians. It is unsafe to cross both for children and our more frail seniors. Traffic frequently moves at speeds significantly above posted limits. Red lights are considered only a ' polite suggestion". And, it does not serve even those cars as well as it could.
What is being advocated by this dialogue on Skinny Streets is a rational and considered evaluation of productive alternatives to the status quo - an evaluation of alternative solutions to improve our communities and how they will evolve in the next decades.
There are many possible solutions but the key is to discuss them openly and constructively, with the goal of a better, greener and more liveable Delta.
It would seem that Ian Sunderland would like to be included in all Mustel research undertakings. ( Delta Optimsit Aug 12) .Similarly, he would like his neighbours in Boundary Bay to be the sole audience for future polling in the community of Tsawwassen. Sunderland is a small fish. He is part of a small community that represents a fraction of the population base of Tsawwassen.
As usual, he thinks that he is special because he lives in Boundary Bay. Grow up dude....there are lots of people that want change and the Mustel poll clearly illustrates that there is appetite for it.
Well...at the risk of sounding redundant, here is another example of overblown rhetoric, quickly published in our local rag because presumably these are the only public offerings available.
Duane Dickinson generalizes, hypothesizes and generally gives the impression that he know what he is talking about in his poorly articulated but nonetheless published letter in the Aug 12 Delta Optimist
It is really easy to spew and the Optimist does afford a venue for it.
Duane...did you participate in the Charrette process or are your opinions to be taken as de-facto knowledge due to your excellent Duanism?
I like Ed Ries and find him to be a thoughtful person. However, Ed, as he often does, generalizes cheery picked points for his opinions.
His recent letter in the Aug12 Delta Optimist demonstrates Ed's naivety in relation to traffic calming and the peripheral issues and benefits surrounding it.
Like usual, Ed has most likely failed to speak to Sean Hodgins or to Peter Dandyk regarding the context of the comments. If he had done so he would understand potential outcomes far more clearly.
I understand how people cling to old ideas. New ideas require work to implement. It takes effort to understand and appreciate potential benefits of new ideas . People who don't make the attempt are lazy in my opinion.
well said
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