Elmwood Trail Extension Controversy in Omaha
Masa Critica
on Happy Hollow Road the other day and saw some signs up on people's
lawns, saying "STOP TRAIL" and either "Save Our Neighborhood" or "Save
Our Trees." There was a phone number, but nobody answered.
So I picked up a local neighborhood newsletter (of the
"Dundee-Memorial Park Association") to see whether there was any info
about it. I found out that it's in reference to extending the Elmwood
Trail from Memorial Park to Saddle Creek, by way of Happy Hollow Road.
They set up a website:
http://dundee-memorialpark.org/trailwatch.htm
The extension will ultimately connect up with Fontenelle and points
north. Here's a description from the Nebraska Department of Roads,
who calls it the "Omaha Inner City Trail": "$329,270 for preliminary
engineering and construction of a trail connecting Memorial Park and
Fontenelle Park in Omaha. The proposed 1.7 mile, 8-foot wide trail is
located along Happy Hollow Boulevard beginning at the north end of
Memorial Park and ending at Northwest Radial Highway just north of
[Decatur] Street."
This is all informative, but I still don't have any idea who's
objecting to the trail or why. I called a few times, but nobody's
answered the phone number on the signs. I saw a brief TV news segment
in which a woman mentioned "safety factors," but there's been no other
coverage.
Does anyone know what the controversy's all about?
max
Masa Critica wrote:
> I saw a brief TV news segment
> in which a woman mentioned "safety factors," but there's been no other
> coverage.
I'd be very interested in hearing of what you discover. I suspect that
you're describing is occurrin in an affluent, white upper/upper-middle
class neighborhood.
AND I will bet that what they're _really_ concerned about is "people of
colour" gaining stealthy access to their neighborhood. Something
similar happened along certain parts of the Chicagoland Prairie path
when it was created/consolidated years ago.
Sadly, some people are such risk averse cowards that they see anything
affording ped/bike access as dangerous and needful of opposition.
.max
Dennis P. Harris
<beta...@earthlink.net> wrote:
> I'd be very interested in hearing of what you discover. I suspect that
> you're describing is occurrin in an affluent, white upper/upper-middle
> class neighborhood.
>
> AND I will bet that what they're _really_ concerned about is "people of
> colour" gaining stealthy access to their neighborhood. Something
> similar happened along certain parts of the Chicagoland Prairie path
> when it was created/consolidated years ago.
>
the same thing is happening in anchorage, alaska now too. the
NIMBYs object to the extension of the wonderful anchorage coastal
trail to the southern coast of the city. the same kind of
objection occured a dozen years ago when the first part of the
trail was built, but the adjoining property owners now all
consider it an asset, and houses on the trail now go for higher
prices than those a block away.
this business of folks objecting to a trail in their neighborhood
happens regularly all over the country. for some reason it's ok
to have a street in front (or even in back) of your house, but a
trail that doesn't allow automobile access is somehow suspect?
these folks seem to think that homeless & poor people will use
these trails, when from my observation it's usually yuppies on
roller blades or on overly expensive showoff bikes they only ride
on nice days.
that makes about as much sense as some local NIMBYs here who
didn't want streetlights in their neighborhood because "it would
make it easier for kids to steal stuff from cars" ignoring the
fact that thefts would be reduced if the street was lighted.
Steve McDonald
What the neighborhood obstructionists fear is the savage, roving
bicycle gangs that immediately swarm onto new pathways and pillage every
nearby residence. They have no problem with the wholesome, always
law-abiding people who drive motor vehicles past the front of their
houses. Have you seen the credit card commercials that show a horde of
barbarians sacking the houses of people who don't have the right kind of
card? This is the image that uptight, establishment types, who are
non-riders, have of us unwashed bike thugs.
Steve McDonald
Mitch Haley
> AND I will bet that what they're _really_ concerned about is "people of
> colour" gaining stealthy access to their neighborhood.
Somebody should point out to them that they already have public roads
running right in front of their houses, and they consider that to be
a benefit.
Mitch
Masa Critica
upper/upper-middle class neighborhood." An existing trail network
that ends near the University of Nebraska at Omaha would be extended
to an African-American neighborhood. I don't know whether racist fear
is involved, but again, they're not communicating their concerns much
at all, so who can tell?
It's strange that the state is calling this the "Omaha Inner City
Trail," since it actually avoids the inner city. There's a different
proposed future trail that's closer to the city center, which would go
nearby the birthplaces of Malcolm X and Gerald R. Ford.
I found another newsletter with an uncredited concern about the trail
running "literally through their front yards." "Literally?"
Jym Dyer
http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_np=0&u_pg=36&u_sid=662691
Still pretty vague.
<_Jym_>
Keith F. Lynch
> AND I will bet that what they're _really_ concerned about is "people
> of colour" gaining stealthy access to their neighborhood.
Something they can't possibly do using the roads. There's a great
danger that a burglar will take your new wide screen TV, and haul it
away on his bike. And that a kidnapper will use a bike to take away
your children. Thankfully, such crimes are completely impossible with
cars on roads.
> Something similar happened along certain parts of the Chicagoland
> Prairie path when it was created/consolidated years ago.
> Sadly, some people are such risk averse cowards that they see
> anything affording ped/bike access as dangerous and needful of
> opposition.
Here in Northern Virginia, one house has a spotlight shining along the
W&OD trail. When I talked to the homeowner about the risk that it
would cause cyclists to crash, he said that was his intention. He
didn't like cyclists near his precious house.
--
Keith F. Lynch - k...@keithlynch.net - http://keithlynch.net/
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