Reading the Highland Villager #21 (August 4th - 17th Edition)

[Basically, the problem is that the best source of local streets & sidewalks news in Saint Paul is the Highland Villager. This wouldn't be a problem, except that its not available online. I'm reading the Highland Villager so that you don't have to. Until this newspaper goes online, sidewalk information must be set free.]

Total # of articles about sidewalks: 10
Total # of articles about sidewalks written by Jane McClure: 8



Title: City, club find middle ground on Marshall Avenue sidewalk; St. Paul agrees to pay all construction costs
Author: Jane McClure

Not-so-short version: A [surprisingly slanted] above-the-fold bit which views it a "middle ground" compromise that the wealthy lawyers who golf at the Town and Country threatened a lawsuit and forced city taxpayers to foot 100% of the bill for completing [at long last] the unfinished sidewalk along Marshall. The piece cites the T&C folks prominently, and buries Councilmember Stark's epistolary defense of the sidewalk: "People walking from the east of Town and Country Club 'need to cross busy Marshall Avenue twice in order to cross the bridge or go north on Mississippi River Blvd. ... A street that inconveniences the pedestrians as compared to the motorist or cyclist, is not a street designed to encourage walking. In my mind, and in the estimation of the many community members who conceived and worked to implement this project, this public good outweighs the loss of the crab apple trees and the addition of a modest amount of concrete'". [Seems sensible to me? For years, I've wondered why there was no place to walk there. Plus, cyclists don't exactly have it easy. There's no bike lane on what is a very central route over the Marshall Avenue bridge. -Ed.]


Title: Rings around the city: Ashes, ashes, they'll all come down
Author: Jane McClure

Short short version: The Emerald Ash Borer is forcing the city to cut down 181 ash trees in Highland Park. Article quotes residents who would also like the city to cut down any gingo trees planted in the 80s and 90s. [Time to genetically engineer a "gingko borer"? -Ed.]


Title: Jefferson ash removal tied to paving project
Author: Jane McClure

Short short version: Same as above, only w/ added mention of the upcoming Jefferson bike lane. Includes some mystification prose about the upcoming Jefferson Bike Boulevard, "which largely consist of signs and pavement markings". [So true! That is what streets consist of. -Ed.]


Title: Council seeks another opinion on Wild Onion patio request; new hearing pending on liquor service extension
Author: Jane McClure

Short short version: Same old interminable story about booze on the Wild Onion patio. Councilmember Thune is apparently stonewalling the request by asking for another opinion from a judge or something.


Title: Council forgives parkland fee for Carondelet Village development
Author: Jane McClure

Short short version: At the request of Councilmember Harris, the aforementioned senior nun housing complex at Fairview and Randolph will not have to pay $27K in parkland feees. [Insert nun joke here. -Ed.]


Title: Walkable Mac-Grove moves her to exercise more
Author: Betsy Dodder

Short short version: Wonderful op-ed column about older lady who uses "walking sticks" to go on long walks through the neighborhood. Includes multiple admittances of silly / dumb appearance of said walking style .


Title: Summit-U neighbors jump on board new Subway at Selby-Victoria corner
Author: Dave Page

Short short version: Piece on new Subway shop that went in at the long vacant / abandoned Selby corner.


Title: Liquor service extended to sidewalk cafe at Green Mill
Author: Jane McClure

Short short version: Self explanatory. Cites angry neighbor, pissed at "motorists who violate the one-way traffic signs on nearby Lincoln Avenue."


Title: New pedestrian islands tested at Jefferson and Cleveland
Author: Jane McClure

Short short version: Pedestrian streetscape improvements are being tested at Jefferson and Cleveland beginning this month. The city will decide whether or not to keep them sometime next year.


Title: County triples rail budget to prepare for Union Depot hub
Author: Jane McClure

Short short version: Ramsey Co. is paying a lot of dough to help w/ the remodeling of the Union Depot. Most of the money comes from "State and Federal grants".