Tuesday, March 29, 2016

what's wrong with this picture?

What's wrong with this picture?


Ambient light conditions are quite bright, bright enough that the street light does not have any effect on lighting conditions or visibility, yet it is still turned on.

Several months ago, this light and many others in the 19th ward became brighter. At the same time, many of these lights started staying on much longer. They are often lit in conditions when no street lighting is required - a waste of electricity. In our current budget situation, can our city afford this kind of waste?

Thursday, March 17, 2016

Whistler Woods volunteer workday this Friday 3/18

It's great to get outdoors on the weekend. Volunteers are needed this Friday 3/18 from 10 am to noon for a habitat restoration workday.


Hiking boots or other boots or shoes that offer good support and traction are a good idea. When you arrive, look for volunteers along the lefthand side of the main parking lot, near the end of the parking lot. If you have work gloves, bring them, otherwise gloves will be available.  

** Special treat: quesadillas at the end of the workday if you volunteer. **

How to get there:   Whistler Woods is just east of 13400 S Halsted in Riverdale.

By bike: if you're coming from the north, ride the Major Taylor Trail south until it ends in Whistler Woods and continue to the parking lot to find the volunteers.

By car: take Halsted to Forestview (13400S) - parking lot is the first left turn after you turn east onto Forestview.

From I-57, exit at eastbound 127th, then turn right on Halsted, then continue to 13400S and follow the directions above.

From I-94, exit at westbound 130th.  Continue past the viaduct, right (northbound) on Indiana, then continue left on 127th to Halsted. Continue to 13400S and follow the directions above.

By transit:  Pace 352 Halsted bus


Questions? Call Chris, 773-746-5223. 

resources for family biking

Are you thinking about getting out to ride with your kids and not sure what might work for you?  There are plenty of resources out there - local and elsewhere - on biking with kids of various ages.  Spend a little time browsing and you're likely to find info that suits your needs.

http://chicagobikemom.com/

http://chicargobike.blogspot.com/

http://grist.org/biking/babes-in-bikeland-advice-for-cycling-with-kids/

http://www.rowdykittens.com/2010/09/bikesandbbabies/

http://www.seattlebikeblog.com/tag/family-biking/

Scan down this page for an extensive list of women's bike resources.

Here's an impressive blog by a family doing lost distance travel by bike.



If you want to connect face to face, trying a Kidical Mass ride in another Chicago neighborhood is a good way to start.

Monday, March 14, 2016

Big Marsh Park workday Sat. 3/19

If you want to help with the work of building Big Marsh Park (mountain bike park and nature area), come out this Saturday 3/19 from 9 am to noon.  Here's where you find it - enter from Stony Island. You can reach this section of Stony Island from Doty (west side of Lake Calumet), 103rd or 122nd.


Hiking boots, work boots, or sturdy shoes you don't mind getting mud on are a good idea.  If you have work gloves you like, bring 'em, otherwise gloves will be available for use.

Sunday, March 13, 2016

Friends of the Major Taylor Trail meeting on Wed. 3/16

Friends of the Major Taylor Trail will meet on Wed. 3/16 at Ridge Park fieldhouse (1817 W 96th St.), 6:30 to 8:00 pm.

For those who aren't familiar with our group and what we do, we are a non-profit advocacy group working to improve and maintain the Major Taylor Trail and promote its use. We have an active working relationship with the Chicago Park District, Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Openlands and other non-profits and government agencies. We organize volunteer workdays, bike rides and other events.

We'd love to have your ideas and help with future events and projects. Please join us! Everyone is welcome.

Saturday, March 12, 2016

what we could lose if Evergreen Plaza is redeveloped without ped access and bike parking

Crain's Chicago Business recently ran an article about the Lormax Stern redevelopment plan for Evergreen Plaza. One of the things that is too often overlooked in mall development is that, even when people are using cars as their primary form of transportation to get to the mall, they still need to be able to walk safely from their cars to where they're going. In many business districts, employees use bikes as transportation for much of the year - an affordable option that helps their income go further. This is typically overlooked at malls.

Thousands of people live within easy walking and biking distance of this site. If we miss out on the opportunity to get infrastructure that would make walking and biking reasonable options for people to get to Evergreen Plaza, we get more traffic congestion, air pollution, road rage and longer travel times to destinations we might reach via 95th and Western. All of this costs us in quality of life.

Here's a much better example from the north side.  Note the ped refuge islands at the ends of the parking rows, the red-colored sidewalk along those islands and between the north-south parking rows, and crosswalks connecting the refuge islands. This design does not sacrifice a significant amount of parking and greatly improves walking conditions.

Proposed Evergreen Plaza site plan
Now is the time to put pressure on the developer to modify their crappy car-centric site plan to accommodate safe pedestrian access and include some bike parking. Bike access from the 98th St. end of the site could be feasible from 99th via Maplewood, Campbell or Artesian - if there are bike racks to use. This could be useful both for customers and store employees.

When the mall was still open, I and many neighbors walked there to shop at Carson's and other stores. I'm not about to get in the car, make traffic worse, and deal with all the traffic and parking hassles to go half a freakin' mile once it's open again.

If reducing car traffic and having safer access whether or not you drive to the Plaza makes a difference to you, please take a few minutes to write to the developer. Ask that half a lane or a lane of car parking be replaced with one or two east-west sidewalks within the parking lot so that people can walk through the parking lot with less risk of being hit.

Also ask for bike racks in 2 or more locations. This can make a difference both for customers and for store employees. Employees typically don't make a lot of money. If they can ride their bikes to work, it's an affordable option that may be faster than a bus, depending on where they live. Bike rack locations that might work well include 98th St. by the southeast corner of Carson's and near the health club.  Access from 99th St. via Campbell or other adjacent streets is very workable if there's a place to lock up your bike.  Please include an information link on bike parking, and emphasize that bike racks need to be decent quality and properly installed.

This is a great opportunity to make a positive difference. I don't know if they'll listen to us. We have nothing to lose by asking. Who's with me?



Friday, March 11, 2016

non sequitur Friday

In honor of Sunday's South Side Irish Parade...






Tuesday, March 8, 2016

South Side Irish parade on Sunday 3/13

Yes, the big day is almost here.

The parade starts at noon on Sunday and goes south on Western from 103rd to 115th.



If you need info on parking restrictions, you can find it here. Maybe I'll see you there.

Thursday, March 3, 2016

95th and 99th St. Metra stations to lose ticket agents

According to yesterday's DNA Info piece, the Metra stations at 95th St. and 99th St. will no longer have ticket agents on duty as of 3/14.

Wednesday, March 2, 2016

Whistler Woods habitat restoration workday on Sat. 3/5

It's great to get outdoors on the weekend. Volunteers are needed this Saturday 3/5 from 10 am to 1 pm for a habitat restoration workday.


Hiking boots or other boots or shoes that offer good support and traction are a good idea. When you arrive, look for volunteers along the lefthand side of the main parking lot, near the end of the parking lot. If you have work gloves, bring them, otherwise gloves will be available.

How to get there:   Whistler Woods is just east of 13400 S Halsted in Riverdale.

By bike: if you're coming from the north, ride the Major Taylor Trail south until it ends in Whistler Woods and continue to the parking lot to find the volunteers.

By car: take Halsted to Forestview (13400S) - parking lot is the first left turn after you turn east onto Forestview.

From I-57, exit at eastbound 127th, then turn right on Halsted, then continue to 13400S and follow the directions above.

From I-94, exit at westbound 130th.  Continue past the viaduct, right (northbound) on Indiana, then continue left on 127th to Halsted. Continue to 13400S and follow the directions above.

By transit:  Pace 352 Halsted bus


Questions? Call Chris, 773-746-5223.