BS: My Town and What they're planning

Subject: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: john f weldon
Date: 22 May 09 - 07:36 PM

I've lived 40 of the last 60 years in Montreal West. Here's what the South end of Westminster (the main street) looks like now, and what they have planned for it.

We fight this damned war against "progress " every dozen years or so, sometimes the forces of preservation win, and sometimes they don't.

Now and Soon

Geez!

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: pdq
Date: 22 May 09 - 07:40 PM

Photos are clearly doctored. To what point?

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: meself
Date: 22 May 09 - 07:44 PM

I should have thought to show what the street looks like now and what it will look like after some proposed construction - no?

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: gnu
Date: 22 May 09 - 07:49 PM

Put up a parkin lot?

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: katlaughing
Date: 22 May 09 - 07:52 PM

The added buildings are truly ugly...some progress, eh?

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: gnu
Date: 22 May 09 - 07:53 PM

But... do they really intend to leave a few trees?

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: bobad
Date: 22 May 09 - 07:58 PM

From what I recall Westminster is a commercial street, so isn't development pretty much to be expected? Is it the scale that is being opposed? The south end always reminded me of the main streets of long ago cities.

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: Bobert
Date: 22 May 09 - 07:59 PM

Here in the US our enlightened Supreme Court has ruled that a locality can use condemanation in order to gain access to your property if the corporate fat cats want it to put up a "parking lot", or Walmart...

B~

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: john f weldon
Date: 22 May 09 - 08:16 PM

pdq

The first photo is seamed together from four photos I took yesterday. No doctoring other than to line them up for a panoramic view. That's the way the street looks now.

There are currently no 4-story buildings in town but the new plan is to have 4-story buildings all along. I took photos of the few 3-story buildings that already exist in town, and added one story & matted them into the street to show folks what it will look like.

It is more accurate than the artist's conception that the mayor presented. His four-story buildings are drawn to look the same height as the Town Hall, which is 2 stories.

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: john f weldon
Date: 22 May 09 - 08:19 PM

The grey building actually exists one block further north. It was built in a public park 25 years ago. The idea then was that selling the park would pay for a swimming pool.

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: Lox
Date: 22 May 09 - 08:22 PM

Meself,

You display uncanny perception.

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: pdq
Date: 22 May 09 - 08:22 PM

Thanks for explaining. Just thought the remnants of a tree and the discontinuity of power lines was odd.

I hate ugly buildings as much as anybody else.

Good luck stopping them.

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: john f weldon
Date: 22 May 09 - 08:24 PM

Bobad-

The south end of Westminster is supposedly commercial, but, except for the (much hated) car lot, hasn't been used that way. On the east side are three homes, a small public library, and a tiny public park. On the west side are two parks, a community center & the Town Hall.

There have been no 4-story buldings anywhere in town yet.

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: bobad
Date: 22 May 09 - 09:35 PM

Is the stretch you are referring to just south of the railroad tracks? I recall that car lot being a blight.

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: john f weldon
Date: 22 May 09 - 09:54 PM

Yes, the "business" area is just north of the tracks. There isn't much business there either; we don't have a grocery store or a butcher. A convenience store, a fruit store, a book store, a pet supplies... There's little parking, so those who shop there do so on foot. If you are going to drive, there are huge malls, and every kind of giant grocery store, Wallmarts, whatever, about 5 minutes outside town.

On the South side, the car lot is there because it has been there forever. It was there in 1950 when I first moved to MTLW, so what can you do?

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 23 May 09 - 06:40 PM

Just because a street is "commercial" - which I take it means people don't live there - is no reason why it has to be ugly. like that. Some of the most beautiful streets in the world have been "commercial" ever since they were built a few centuries ago.

Subject: RE: BS: My Town and What they're planning
From: john f weldon
Date: 23 May 09 - 07:57 PM

4 families live on that block, in single-family dwellings. There's only one actual commercial building, the car lot. The change is to increase building heights, and promote commercial development. On paper, it was designated "commercial" in the 1880's.

The buildings I matted in are all within one block of the proposed development area, and were all promoted as "beautiful". The grey building was built 25 years ago, and was built in a public park. The exchange was, we'd get a swimming pool, which we did.

The point of posting on Mudcat wasn't to debate about my community, but my guess that in many communities, similar battles are being waged. Some places I've visited have dealt with these problems fairly well, others... ...agggghhh!

One of the best, Edinburgh, Scotland. Terrifyingly the worst, Cleveland, Ohio. No, I wasn't in either place long enough to really judge, but some things stand out...

...and really, if Sao Paulo is where we're headed, God Bless Us Everyone.