Thursday, July 29, 2004
Those ghost-town blues, Part II: Just a hunch: The streets will be slightly more crowded today and the mood much better. Base the prediction on bar activity (of course) last night on Beacon Hill, where the sidewalks and restaurant/pub businesses were noticeably more active. ... Definitely try to get into town today, by public transit, to see the city. Not trying to be a civic booster. Hub Blog has an agenda: To force people to see how the city could look more often. The lack of traffic, as I said yesterday, is PLEASANT. The beautification projects worked: The city has never looked so nice. Because of the dramatic decrease in traffic, I’ve stumbled upon gardens and plants and alleyway nooks I’ve never noticed before. ... Has the DNC been an economic bust? Surely. Just read stories like this and this -- or come in and see for yourself. It's the lack of people that's the tragedy. But ... The mayor’s plan for weekend discounts is highly annoying on two levels: 1.) He's asking small businesses to foot the bill -- again. 2.) He’s inviting back the cars. How about keeping the parking bans for the weekend and letting pedestrians feel what it’s like to own the city? Oh well. ...
... A few more negative-positive DNC observations and lessons now that Hub Blog is in a sappy green transportation mood: The delegates have clearly enjoyed the city -- and rightly have put blame for any complaints on the security. ... Tourists love Boston’s trolleys. Will transit officials finally admit/recognize that there’s a Choo Choo gene in people that favor subways/trains/trolleys over buses? They’re literally a tourist draw. ... Sure wish the city, when drawing up plans for the Big Dig, had included logical and efficient bike paths for two-wheel commuters. Or a monorail linking North and South stations areas. ... Could we dispatch a team of planners to Montreal to study its commuter bike-path grid? They just don’t plunk bike paths down anywhere, as NYC did in the ‘70s. They gave it thought, keeping the bikeways off of major thoroughfares and putting them in logical places where people go in mass. ... Let’s figure out the DNC budget for street flowers and plantings etc. -- and make the funding permanent. ... Pick up the pace of permitting outdoor restaurants. ... Pick up the pace of permitting private transportation solutions for the city. The private sector really took up the slack for public transit shutdowns this week. ... Is it time for Boston to explore/study London’s daring market-orientated special toll system to enter downtown?
Oh God. Hub Blog feels like an earthy lefty. ...
Jesse’s very old act: Glad yet another Boston critic gets humbled. ... But what I found fascinating about Jesse Jackson’s original comments is how academia-focused he remains. “Boston must work even more diligently at being the academic center it is, at being the shining light on the hill.” ... Not a clue about other institutions in the city. Not a clue. ... He even apparently thinks universities are the future source of financial jobs, based on his ludicrous comments about Harvard’s endowment. Does he realize that Fidelity and State Street each have $1 trillion under management? That Putnam’s assets, though dwindling, are 10 times larger than Harvard’s? Not that Fidelity, State Street or Putnam want Jesse to know about it.
... A few more negative-positive DNC observations and lessons now that Hub Blog is in a sappy green transportation mood: The delegates have clearly enjoyed the city -- and rightly have put blame for any complaints on the security. ... Tourists love Boston’s trolleys. Will transit officials finally admit/recognize that there’s a Choo Choo gene in people that favor subways/trains/trolleys over buses? They’re literally a tourist draw. ... Sure wish the city, when drawing up plans for the Big Dig, had included logical and efficient bike paths for two-wheel commuters. Or a monorail linking North and South stations areas. ... Could we dispatch a team of planners to Montreal to study its commuter bike-path grid? They just don’t plunk bike paths down anywhere, as NYC did in the ‘70s. They gave it thought, keeping the bikeways off of major thoroughfares and putting them in logical places where people go in mass. ... Let’s figure out the DNC budget for street flowers and plantings etc. -- and make the funding permanent. ... Pick up the pace of permitting outdoor restaurants. ... Pick up the pace of permitting private transportation solutions for the city. The private sector really took up the slack for public transit shutdowns this week. ... Is it time for Boston to explore/study London’s daring market-orientated special toll system to enter downtown?
Oh God. Hub Blog feels like an earthy lefty. ...
Jesse’s very old act: Glad yet another Boston critic gets humbled. ... But what I found fascinating about Jesse Jackson’s original comments is how academia-focused he remains. “Boston must work even more diligently at being the academic center it is, at being the shining light on the hill.” ... Not a clue about other institutions in the city. Not a clue. ... He even apparently thinks universities are the future source of financial jobs, based on his ludicrous comments about Harvard’s endowment. Does he realize that Fidelity and State Street each have $1 trillion under management? That Putnam’s assets, though dwindling, are 10 times larger than Harvard’s? Not that Fidelity, State Street or Putnam want Jesse to know about it.
