We’re just going to call Chillicothe a very, very small town. I’ve been reading about its city leaders’ plan to remove 47 downtown spaces and add two lanes to Main Street. Read more here.
The residents and business owners are up in arms over the parking, but city officials say several of its intersection have become extremely dangerous. Not only are accidents there higher than the national average, but the federal government is somehow paying for 80 percent of the improvement, and that’s an offer nobody could refuse.
Forty-seven spaces lost is probably a lot in a town of 1,500 – just like four lanes must seem like a a pretty wide street, or in the words of one Chillicothian:
“….Bruce Arnold also questioned the project, saying four lanes would create “a speedway” for motorists.”
I briefly lived in a city that had one stop light. These days I live in an area where 8 lanes is no big deal and 4 is normal. Small towns are nice, but big ones are just as nice. Either way, it goes to show parking issues are found everywhere and on every scale imaginable.
