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Originally Posted by emathias
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That is interestijng Emathias, and it just goes to show how much Chicago suffered during its white flight and attendant decline in the 1950-1980 period. Nonetheless I think my point was not to contend that this area had reached a new population zenith; but instead to pint out that given the development in the area over the past 10-12 years a few more stops probably could be used beyond the one at Morgan that is planned....I has forgotten about that one...
Also the green line presents a chance to focus development at "new" un-abandoned stations....start with a few and start with one closer to central area.
I know this sounds like wishful polyannishness but sites along the Red line are all but built out.....Brown line is getting there. The green line has pretty much not experienced any of this development...for myriad of reasons not the least of which is the bombed out nature of some of the neighborhoods through which it passes......but given the dearth of stops along its route it is not surprising this is the case.
I recall a story from my youth....my mother used to tell me back in the 1970's......"you don't want to live near an L line; it brings crime" At the time this was in a nutshell the common wisdom...and in many cases I don't blame my mom for thinking it. In the 1970's and even 80'sd many areas around L stops were less than desirable even along the redline....hell to this day you just have to look at thorndale or morse to see that this idea still holds some truth....though both those stops are better than they were 20 years ago or so.
Instead of being reactive....putting in stops where development has occurred I just wish CTA could be somewhat proactive here and team with zoning / planning and local commerce chambers to drive denser more intense use near such an asset as an L stop. At this point much of the green line is a blank slate....in some case stops are over 1 mile apart (sam holds for some of Redline on south side). Add a few more in nearby neighborhoods and zone appropriately. It will take time...but I think it could be succesful.
I am no CTA or planning expert....just an enthusiastic amateur who care about trying to figure out ways to help the city I was born in and live in get better. Chicago's heavy rail infrastructure is arguably the second best in the nation (DC would be the only rival) I just think it needs to be leveraged better. The disinvestment during the 30+ years after 1950 or so scarred this city....but it is a testament to the city's strength (and after all a city is but the people who live in it) and perseverance that it has not collapsed entirely. Open up parcels to development along the green line to Indians, Pakistanis , Koreans, Mexicans, and whoever are the new immigrant mix that has aided in Chicago's population not collapsing. Allow them to build 2-4 flats as was done in the past so families could bundle their resources together to own homes. Many of these immigrants have very strong familial ties leverage that within a development schema.
Just random thoughts on a tuesday before thanksgiving