Downtown Greenspace

As I watched from my 12th floor office; a City Bulldozer and Endloader working feverishly on the concrete in the plaza between the Riverfront Apartments and the Edison building, I couldn't help but think to myself... What are these guy's doing?

Curiosity getting the better of me I decided to take a lunch time stroll and get answers to my questions. Approaching the construction site I believe I have my answer. Of course, they must be restoring Madison Street to extend to Summit because of the New Arena. Realizing that there may not be enough space, I am now thinking that there must be some utility which needs maintenance as I observe the Green, Yellow, Blue and Red spray painting indicators applied to the NEW CONCRETE which was just laid not more then 3 month ago.

Believeing that I am witnessing a repair job modled after that of the Road Repair (you know...repave the road and dig it up a week later to replace a water line) I approach the worker standing there with a tape measure in one hand and a smoke in the other and ask him "What are you guys doing to the plaza?"

The response I got set me back a bit. "We are digging up all the concrete (including the new stuff) to return this area back to nature. We will be planting grass in this area after all the concrete is gone".

Now being a lover of nature you would think that I would be pleased about this. However, the reality of a budget defecit and a Trash Collection fee tempers my excitment for Downtown Greenspace and fuels my rage as to how our tax dollars are once again being spent on a (although thoughtful and esthically pleasing project) one which we cannot afford at this time. How can the city justify the threat of layed off Police and Firemen, complain that there is no money for new Police Vehicles, close city pools, impose a backdoor tax like the Recycling/Trash collection fee, have the Mayor ranting how we must make sacrifices to balance the city budget and the see a new expensive unneeded project as this one to reclaim a very narrow piece of Downtown landscape back to grass.

We have lived with this area as concrete for the past 20+ years! I do not believe that we needed to reclaim it just now!