Central Street Neighbors Association Est. 2007

Tonight there was a meeting at the American Legion hall on Central Street to hear about plans by the Board of the Frank Govern Memorial Golf Course (formerly Peter Jans and also affectionately known as Canal Shores) to request a permit from the city to park up to 300 cars on two areas of the golf course during football season.

The Board estimates that this will be for from 4 to 6 games. The cars would be parked on hole #9 south of Isabella and west of the canal and hole #18 west of the CTA tracks and east of the canal between Central and Lincoln.

They are promising to have portable restrooms at each

At the July 15, 2008 Zoning Board of Appeals meeting, the Board unanimously decided to recommend to the City Council that the Ewing St. 7-11 should be denied a Special Use Permit to be open 24 hours.

The Board also unanimously decided to recommend to the City Council that the 7-11 be given a Special Use Permit to operate 6AM until Midnight.

It is also going to recommend that the 7-11 be required to turn off all outside signage during closed hours, leaving on only enough inside lighting to provide security. The Board will also

Last night was a mostly heartwarming evening. For those not aware, the ZBA unanimously recommended against 24 hour operation. Jeff Smith gave a wonderful presentation, as did Eb Moran. All the neighbors who spoke were eloquent in opposing the proposal. The board was on the same page throughout, and I especially appreciated board members Fox and Wilson, who probed the 7-11 owner Mr. Patel to consider withdrawing his petition (as they said "if you care so much about your neighborhood and you see the entire room here- 40 neighbors - against your position, wouldn't you want to withdraw it?".

The crosswalk in front of Foodstuffs has finally been painted! Ed. note: See before & after pix at right. I wrote and called many people, it looks like someone finally listened.

Since then, I've watched the traffic to see if drivers are stopping. It is a little better, but

Biking is healthy for both the globe and our glutes. But if, as predicted, more people start riding bikes instead of driving, they'll have a tough time finding places to lock their two-wheeler on Central Street. Both the City and local businesses may not realize just how many folks already bike, not just for recreation, but for transportation.