A do-it-yourself city?

[prairiestate]

Very interesting. One reason I posted this idea here is that in the Colorado Springs forum there is a prevailing libertarian view, and many support this plan. I could see some advantages and disadvantages to it, and was curious to see what the response would be from an entirely different cultural viewpoint. There are some very good points here, and it probably is a bad idea, at least for Chicago, though it probably won't work out so well for CS either.

[PokerPlayer1]

Originally Posted by ajolotl

you should check out Palmer Park on 111th in Roseland. It's huge and pretty beautiful (a few BK bags notwithstanding). For kicks I took a trip there early one morning for a brisk walk followed by a scan of the paper. You'd be surprised.

I know where it is. Your walk that morning might have turned out OK, however, walking around parks in Roseland has a statistically negative expectation.

Originally Posted by ajolotl

Regardless I like that it addresses the issue head on -- if you can't afford something, you can't have it. This is reality. More individuals and municipalities need to think this way.

Agree with this 100%.

[ajolotl]

I wasn't claiming that it is safe, was referring to your comment "...start weeding the very parks that have long since been abandoned to gangs and crack dealers since none of the 'neighborhood residents' ever used them in any productive or recreational capacity in the first place?"

Palmer Park seemed pretty popular for a morning stroll and wasn't weed infested and, in the day at least, not obviously run by crack dealers. Your descriptions of ghetto parks didn't match my experience. In fact, I find the opposite of what you say to be true -- the parks tend to be the exception -- well manicured bastions of prosperity and cleanliness amidst a lot of blight.

Originally Posted by PokerPlayer1

I know where it is. Your walk that morning might have turned out OK, however, walking around parks in Roseland has a statistically negative expectation.