This Is How It Begins
One person decides they want a certain feature installed in the neighborhood. A couple other people kind of agree without thinking about it too much. Then, somebody down the block will come up with a reason why the idea is no good. That somebody will find some loudmouth to make a bunch of noise about it. The person who had the idea in the first place will find another loudmouth to represent their camp. Next thing you know, people who have coexisted peaceably for years are at each other's throats, slagging each other off in the papers and pointing fingers during City Council hearings. It's happened too many times.
The debate over the sidewalk on Wallcraft Avenue hasn't quite reached that fever pitch yet. Maybe it won't. That would be nice, if unusual. So far, though, everyone seems pretty level-headed and civil.
The main reason for not wanting the sidewalk is obvious - it's gonna cut into people's yards. Another heavily cited reason is the presence of oak trees.
The only concrete (haha) reasons given in favor of the sidewalk are preventive safety concerns. The neighborhood is family-oriented, so parents want to guarantee their kids have a safe place to play and work on fine motor-skills.
That's a really weak argument. Safe children play in the presence of their parents or on their own property. A better argument might be that the development of a sidewalk encourages a pedestrian vibe, and a pedestrian vibe is an important part of a cycle of local economic development. I don't get the impression the residents of Wallcraft need or want that sort of development, though.
All in all, I'm not seeing much justification for a sidewalk, especially considering that so many of South Tampa's neighborhoods have taken up the battle cry for a strengthened infrastructure. Tampa isn't a billion-dollar city, you know, and if we want to change certain things, we need to consider that it's taking money away from other initiatives. Just last night, I was watching the replay of the most recent Council meeting (although I did actually go out beforehand - I am not that lame) and Councilwoman Ferlita said very plainly that when budget recommendations and requests come in, there are some key items that department heads would be wise to request without hesitation so as to avoid being turned down later in the year because of deficits.
The same idea applies here - there's not much point in battling over the construction of residential sidewalk when we could really use the money to prevent our longest sidewalk from crumbling into the Bay.
The debate over the sidewalk on Wallcraft Avenue hasn't quite reached that fever pitch yet. Maybe it won't. That would be nice, if unusual. So far, though, everyone seems pretty level-headed and civil.
The main reason for not wanting the sidewalk is obvious - it's gonna cut into people's yards. Another heavily cited reason is the presence of oak trees.
Tom Johnston, who lives at 3213 Wallcraft, said his family moved onto Wallcraft because it had no sidewalks. They built their house closer to the street to save an oak tree in the back yard. With a sidewalk taking up 7 feet in front of their house, "It will be pretty close to the front door,'' Johnston said.
The only concrete (haha) reasons given in favor of the sidewalk are preventive safety concerns. The neighborhood is family-oriented, so parents want to guarantee their kids have a safe place to play and work on fine motor-skills.
That's a really weak argument. Safe children play in the presence of their parents or on their own property. A better argument might be that the development of a sidewalk encourages a pedestrian vibe, and a pedestrian vibe is an important part of a cycle of local economic development. I don't get the impression the residents of Wallcraft need or want that sort of development, though.
All in all, I'm not seeing much justification for a sidewalk, especially considering that so many of South Tampa's neighborhoods have taken up the battle cry for a strengthened infrastructure. Tampa isn't a billion-dollar city, you know, and if we want to change certain things, we need to consider that it's taking money away from other initiatives. Just last night, I was watching the replay of the most recent Council meeting (although I did actually go out beforehand - I am not that lame) and Councilwoman Ferlita said very plainly that when budget recommendations and requests come in, there are some key items that department heads would be wise to request without hesitation so as to avoid being turned down later in the year because of deficits.
The same idea applies here - there's not much point in battling over the construction of residential sidewalk when we could really use the money to prevent our longest sidewalk from crumbling into the Bay.
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