Last Night at the Neighborhood Assoc.
Scott & Inay Todd
pacify all the people there who were concerned about the buses on our
streets. Then when we weren't having any of it, they attempted to pit
the people from Lincoln St against the people on Taylor St. by
implying that Lincoln St was taking up the precious time allocated by
Trimet to "find an solution to the current bus problem".
The folks on 52nd came and explained how wonderful TriMet is- now
that a sink hole has opened and the bus doesn't go down their street.
Then without talking to anyone on Taylor, the people on 52nd decided
not to "Ask for support of the MTNA". Thanks guys, the show of
support was deeply gratifying.
Which is not to say I am disappointed in our neighbors on 52nd- I
actual appreciated them coming to the meeting - it is more then most
people on Taylor did. Some had yoga class that couldn't be missed.
Others complain bitterly to me about the buses then can't attend even
one meeting, make a phone call or write a note. Kind of sad, but
indicative of our society on a whole.
Well, I live in a brick house with a large back yard. We mostly use
our front yard to hang out with the neighborhood. But we will fence
the back and maybe the front to try and protect our kids and pets.
If anyone is interested. There is an open house on Wednesday,September
26th at 7:00 with Trimet at the church on 55th and Belmont. Me? I'm
cleaning my sink that night.
Inay Todd
Mark C. Mason
There is definitely strength in numbers.
Mark
Chris Larson
I am sorry that my actions last night made you feel that those of us
on 52nd don't support you. That was not my intent, please let me
explain.
First, Taylor, Madison, 55th, 52nd are all residential streets that
buses should not go down. Certainly, the Miracle on 52nd Street was
great for those of us that live on 52nd, but that doesn't mean that
those of us on 52nd don't support you. After the pothole, we could
have bowed out Monday, we haven't. Furthermore, I thought that Lou,
a resident of 52nd, spoke quite eloquently and passionately about
safety concerns specifically on Taylor.
If you recall, the reason we were on the agenda last night was to
make MTNA aware of the situation and to ask them to sign a letter
supporting for our efforts. My understanding was that the purpose of
the letter was to make sure that TriMet and the City paid attention
to us and did not write us off as kooks. I think you would agree
that we have the attention of TriMet and the City.
Last night, we realized that nobody had drafted the letter for MTNA
to sign.
I thought that with the upcoming TriMet Open House, we all will be
better informed about TriMet's plans and can plan our strategy
accordingly. I thought we would be more effective as an organization
(NABR) if we did not ask the MTNA Board to sign a non-existent letter
that may not adequately address the situation (for example, had
someone had prepared a letter for MTNA last night, it would have not
mentioned Madison).
For those reasons, at the meeting, I said that we would not be asking
the MTNA Board to sign a letter of support tonight, but rather we
would wait to see the outcome of the Open House.
If you feel strongly that a letter signed by the MTNA now would
further our objectives, I am willing to help you make it happen.
On a personal note, I feel that as a group we have been very
effective at getting TriMet and the City to come to the table (which
is what they should have done in the first place). This has taken
much hard work from many folks on many streets, including yourself,
Scott. I'd hate to see that hard work unravel with fingerpointing
and frustration, just before the really hard work of figuring out how
to get the buses off our streets begins.
Best regards
-Chris Larson
Mark C. Mason
Everyone: I second that. Cool heads will prevail.
Mark Mason
Engineering Design Team