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In South Boston, city plants asphalt instead of trees and residents like it
By adamg on Fri, 05/13/2016 - 4:21pm
Some residents, at any rate. Caught in Southie presents the new asphalt islands in the sidewalk in front of the post office. To a casual outsider, they might look ideal for plantings and trees, but some residents objected because plantings and trees bring dogs. And dogs bring, well, you know.
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Comments
gross
oh my those look horrible! but is it a "complete street"?
Another good question,,,
was asked in the article: What is the purpose of those things? Really -- what are they supposed to do?
Horrible indeed. There have
Horrible indeed. There have been massive orange plastic dividers sitting there for years. The city *finally* builds something permanent, and THIS is the result?
No trees, no shrubs, no grass, no benches. There is absolutely no common green space for residents anywhere in this area, a situation which will now continue indefinitely.
And why? Because the same usual suspects complained and made sure there was no grass (because dogs) and no benches (because junkies??). Ugh. Instead we get this. Congratulations.
I hate this neighborhood.
It's the same annoying...
...people that got Starbucks denied in L-Bo Square.
These people can't be priced out fast enough.
- The Original SoBo Yuppie
Says who? The blog post (or
Says who? The blog post (or is it pretending to be actual journalism?) doesn't attribute a source for the claim that residents want the asphalt to keep dogs away.
Unfortunately
some people in the media think that Maureen and Eileen are the spokespersons for everything Southie.
Could be
Maybe that's because they're willing to put their names in print?
Plant shrubs and flowers instead of trees?
Problem solved. Or, alternatively, put in a picnic table or two, with accompanying chairs or benches.
IF you read the comments,
IF you read the comments, some of the residents that complained wrote in. They claim they specifically did not want benches. Those horrible, god awful benches that lead to drug addiction and raise in property taxes.
Ha ha ha!
As if drug addiction and high property taxes weren't already a problem! Pshaw!
Perfect
Now they'll have skateboarders on those smooth, smooth granite curbs and across the 'flat top' of the raised asphalt.
Hey, you get what you ask for.
Stop worrying about the Skateboarders
There will be a car parked on it by 6PM
Skaters? Nah... Watch out for
RAZORSCOOTERS! Everywhere! Also, skaters are a little more intrigued by areas that involve more than asphalt and a basic ledge. I'd be more concerned about neighbors who cant pick up after their pups than the potential for basic skaters. #scootsforeva
And dogs bring.....
"And dogs bring, well you know."
No I don't. What? Joy? Happiness? Unconditional love? Yup, that would suck.
Get the hell out of there and head a bit south to DOT. Get way more for your buck and be around people who are real. And before you start on Dot's gang and gun violence, if you're not gang banging no one cares about your tired ass. In my 50 years here, been robbed once 35 years ago. They got 5 bucks, my nickel bag and my sweet baby blue gator jacket. Meh-- I replaced it with a fine quilted plum Members Only which looked smokin' with my Sweats bi ebe and my all white Spot Builts from Herman's in Quincy They did me a favor.
Dot rules!!!
Dog crap...
...all over the sidewalks.
Dogs should be banned from SoBo since the city is too lazy to do anything to do owners.....and I own a dog.
It would be nice to imagine effective laws
In some places they even have DNA testing so they can figure out what shitty person left a piece of their soul on the sidewalk.
But once you realize that 70% of dogs in the city are unregistered already, in violation of the laws we currently have, then you throw up your hands.
If a dog bothers you, do something about it yourself. Nobody else is going to do anything.
The Dog Problem
It's not an unsolvable problem at all. If they started enforcing the most basic and easily enforceable of the dog laws it would help. It's impossible to make it through the arnold arboretum or pretty much any park in the city without seeing an unleashed dog. Send some dog officers out to write tickets and things will begin improving. Dog owners know that no one is going to do anything so they do whatever they want.
Any ideas?
Space Saver Storage
because who wants to lug a busted toilet up two flights of stairs every day
Heat Islands
They will likely be landscaped soon enough because expanses of concrete, tar, etc. contribute to the heat retention of a area.
Many cities - including Boston - are engineering such things out of the city in order to stay cool.
landscaping to reduce heat retention
This can't happen soon enough in Boston. Interesting!
Newbies
Need to understand there is more to life than property values.
Aside from heat retention,
Aside from heat retention, the excess asphalt can lead to flooding by blocking absorption of water into the ground
So, if there were plantings
So, if there were plantings would they even be maintained?
Dog owners are why we can't have nice things.
Not ALL dog owners mind you, but clearly dog owners ARE responsible for this community reaction. If only there were mandatory colostomies for canines.
I'll get right on that!
Dog owners who don't pick up
Dog owners who don't pick up after their dog un the grass, are also the dog owners who won't pick up after their dog if they poop on the sidewalk / tar island.
That place will still be covered with shit.. and be ugly to look at.
Thorn bushes
can be very pretty to look at. And no one wants to let their dog walk or their child tromp or their teen skateboard through them.
My theory
My guess is that theoretically if there are no amenities on the island, dogs will be less inclined to lift their legs to do their business and owners will be less likely to have their dogs stop there to do their business.
It's kind of like the theory that if you don't have benches around, homeless people won't camp out and sleep there. Of course anyone can nap on the ground, but given the chance to nap on a bench, anyone would choose that.
I'm still trying to figure out a way to train dog owners to pick up after their dogs. Yes, most do, but I've seen owners leave the mess behind. If only it were legal to shove their face into their dog's waste, the problem would be resolved quickly. Aside from that, if it were legal to hit naughty owners on the head with rolled up newspapers when they walk away from the shit, that might help.
Plant
They can plant trees and frame them with plants that repel dogs.