The Bright Side

Once developed, every industrial, commercial and residential development peaks in its value to the city, and then starts a slow decline in its relative importance and, over time, some of the buildings are torn down (Ace, Travers Hotel, NW train depot, Clark). The once new subdivisions of Crawford, Kohn’s and Columbian, whose names are almost unknown by city residents not living in them, are in the northern half of the 3rd district and in the 4th district, where so many single-family homes had been converted to multiple rental apartments that the city passed an ordinance to prohibit any further conversion.

New does not remain new. New becomes old and you can watch that aging in the city over the last 20, 50 & 100 years. It’s all in plain sight, even the newer subdivisions, such as Sturwood, with its multiple water line breaks and Edgewood, where the roads quickly deteriorated and had to be repaved, are showing signs of aging. New fades and loses its value over time. Large plots of land that are subdivided into small lots for developments are like numerous humpty-dumpty characters, and can never be put back together again once they come apart. With all the new subdivisions still under development; Meadow Land, South Winds Prairie, Stone Ridge, Symphony Bay, etc., already in the city, there is no glaring need or want of a new commercial/residential development to be built on the Hillmoor property.

New developments become the old developments, however, land not consumed and divided up for private use does not decrease in value. Hillmoor, can increase in its value to the city and become like Flat Iron Park, a critical asset to the city’s future. Stating it bluntly: “The commercial/residential development of land, can very quickly become its tombstone.”

Development plows under and erases the past and it eliminates whatever else it might have been from the future, and in its place is left a tombstone of today and then on into the future. Like an adopted child, the past is erased, and in its place will be a fading tombstone of what was thought to be so important, but in reality, was not. The Hillmoor land needs to be preserved and not developed into another commercial/residential tombstone.

Cartoon of the Week

Cartoon by Terry O'Neill

 

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