Topic: Americana
Scat Bags and Sidewalks Reflections on city living and trade-offs for civility sake.by Bob Nightingale
(libertarian)
Thursday, September 11, 2008
I moved to the city from the country a few years ago. I've lived in cities before, so it wasn't a total culture shock. My wife took a job about 40 miles farther away from where we lived and I work from home. Since I can hook up my computer just about anywhere, it made sense for us to move. We made the move just before the price of gas went up, so in the long-run, we'll probably come out ahead, if just for the cost of commuting.
One of the daily pleasures I take seriously is walking my dog. I have a four-year old husky-shepherd mix. She loves her morning walks. I start for work late in the morning and go into the evening. She's ready to go at the crack of dawn.
Since moving to the city, I've had to change my routine a bit. My wife and I get a daily newspaper and weekly circulars. The plastic bags are great for picking up dog poop. There, I said it. I pick up my dog's poop. And I'm proud of it.
When I lived in the township, I didn't bother. I didn't know nor saw my neighbors most of the time. I had a soybean field behind my long lot. There were several unimproved fields across the street. One included a farm house that burned down in the 1940s. No one bothered to remove it. It had some chicken coops in the back and an outhouse. A few miles down was a golf course, which provided most of the traffic on my street. My "street" was a long county road that bridged over the local interstate. The onramp was at least a mile away. There was no one to complain when my dog left a deposit.
Since moving to the city, I've rediscovered sidewalks. I've grown to like them. I don't have to get my sneakers muddy. I get to legally walk through my neighbor's yard on a concrete slab. I don't mind taking a baggie with me to clean up after my dog. I don't want her calling card left where my neighbor can see it. In the process, I'm getting to know my neighbors. I even get the occasional thumbs up by a driver passing by.
Not every property has a sidewalk. I talked to one neighbor, who was a property developer. He hates sidewalks. It costs him money. They break and look bad over time. They have to be replaced every so often, at a great cost to the owner and to the city.
I told him I thought it was worth it. They make the city look great. It's safer for pedestrians. It adds to the property value. I don't think either one of us won that one.
Years ago, I lived in Hammond, Indiana. It went through a city-wide initiative to repair or replace all the sidewalks. They put in new sidewalks where there were none. They also replaced many of the streets, and installed new water and sewer lines. That project got people to stop parking their cars on their front lawns. I believe sidewalks improved the property values for the whole city. The investment seemed worth it.
I'm fortunate that I have the means and the freedom to live where I want. I've traded a little more regulation for the benefits of living where I can walk my dog to the local park. I like having city services, such as local police, instead of depending on the county. My internet connection is faster, since the city gets upgrades quicker than the country.
When it comes to leash laws and sidewalks, those decisions are best left to the individual communities. I'd rather argue with my neighbor about the costs and the restrictions in our city, rather than deal with someone from the state capital or D.C.
In the meantime, I have a paper to read. Hopefully its contents are worth more than the bag it came in.
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The views expressed in this
article are those of Bob Nightingale only and do not represent
the views of Nolan Chart, LLC or its affiliates. Bob Nightingale is
solely responsible for the contents of this article and is not an
employee or otherwise affiliated with Nolan Chart, LLC in his/her role as a columnist.
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