Normal: Making Subdivisions More Aging-Friendly

This is an interesting article about making suburbs better for aging Baby Boomers. It discusses not only improving transit options for the agers to get to where they want to go, but also how to bring those places to the suburbs.

Normal doesn't have suburbs (maybe bedroom communities) but does have many subdivisions that are kind of spread out away from businesses. Even with the increasing number of residential developments for retirees in the area, it would be great to meet aging residents where they live. We have a good bus system and a wonderful walking/biking trail, but what about bringing goods and services to the subdivisions?

In order to build businesses in subdivisions (or really close by), zoning codes would need to be revised. I think a more flexible way to provide what the subdivisioners (of all ages) need and want is to have mobile versions of businesses. There have long been book mobiles and ice cream trucks. How about convenience store mobiles? Pharmacy mobiles? Home improvement mobiles? Electronic gadgets mobiles?

Great for residents and businesses, too!

Normal NIMBY: Normal Is My Back Yard!

There is a new show on BBC (not yet on BBC America, but I'll watch for it) called "The Planners" which enters the exciting world of urban planning!  I could see a similar show based on our local Planning Commission, so full of drama and intrigue. Will the developer's request for fewer trees on a proposed apartment building site be approved? Is there an underlying plot to increase the number and size of digital signs in Normal? How do urban chickens fit into all of this? Stay tuned!

Normal New Year: 2013

Happy New Year, Normal!

May 2013 be the year the "hole-in-the-ground" gets filled!

Normal Holiday Lights (from afar)

Couldn't get close to this sign but I appreciate the effort to provide some holiday cheer!

Normal Lighted Trees

When did lighted trees become popular in cities? I'm referring to lights on regular trees, not trees put up for the holidays.  An online search for lighted trees images results in many, many examples.  I wonder if they actually increase the number of visitors (shoppers) to an area, if they increase the time visitors spend in an area, and/or if they increase the morale of visitors and employees in an area. I like lighted trees but they aren't enough to influence my shopping behavior. They do put me in a better mood, though, because they give the area a festive appearance. If they were lit all year, I wouldn't even notice them after a while.

Normal Crosswalk Safety

To the extent that crosswalks in Normal are used, they could be made safer. There is new technology to do this: timers that count down the time left to get across, flashing lights on the crosswalk pavement, and imbedded plastic designating the crosswalk area that lasts much longer than reflective paint.  There is also the strategy of allowing pedestrians to start crossing before the drivers (going the same direction) are allowed to proceed. This probably helps reduce the number of pedestrians getting hit by drivers making turns. If people are being encouraged to walk rather than drive, we should take more steps (pun intended) to make it safer.

Normal Tweets

There are plans to use tweets as a public suggestion box. For example, collecting tweets that originated in Chicago and searching for key words that would help city staff identify problems (people tend to tweet about what's not going well).

There probably wouldn't be hundreds of tweets originating in Normal about town-related problems people are experiencing, but there might be some. I wonder how whiny we would sound . . .
"There are too many leaves on the grass!"
"Why do we have to listen to train whistles at night? I'm trying to sleep."
"Why can't all the stoplights be coordinated so I can speed down the street without stopping?"
"Who painted these bird heads on the streets? I don't like them."
"Why is my water bill now higher than my electric bill?"
"Why do they flush the hydrants in the middle of the night?? I'm trying to sleep."
"Why do they pick up garbage so early? I'm trying to sleep."

Normal Opportunity Area

The report "Are We There Yet? Creating Complete Communities for 21st Century America" is about determining how close we are to having communities that provide what people need. In the section about "opportunity areas" -- areas with "moderate density housing or jobs" and "neighborhoods that ...can lead to improved connectivity and increased rates of walking, biking, and transit use at the regional scale" -- Bloomington-Normal ranks 4th in "Growth Opporunity Areas Compared to Region" for regions under 500,000.

The report includes a set of goals for becoming a "complete community," categorized under goals for creating homes near transportation providers ("living"), goals for regional economic growth ("working"), goals for reducing dependence on automobiles ("moving"), and goals for supporting healthy lifestyles ("thriving"). As I read through the specific goals in each category, I was pleased to find that Normal shares many of them. For example, having the Uptown Station centrally located relative to ISU and the surrounding neighborhoods, having many college graduates to provide "new talent" and having a wide range of employment opportunities, efforts to making walking and biking safe, and promoting access to healthy food, promoting physical activity, and providing access to arts.

Normal isn't quite "there yet" but we're getting there!

Normal Fall

Fall comes to Normal

Normal Bags

The Governor has vetoed a bill that would have required manufacturers to set up programs for recycling plastic bags. This may result in plastic bag bans. I remember the days before plastic bags, when groceries were packed into paper bags and it was difficult to carry more than two bags at a time. I didn't like plastic bags when they first came out because the bag would not sit upright -- items flopped all over the place and even spilled out of the bags.  I've gotten used to plastic bags, though, and have come to depend on them for wastebasket liners. (I still don't like the floppiness and the bags usually end up with holes in them, making them risky for transporting trash.)

The hoped for result of banning plastic bags, of course, is everyone carrying reusable cloth bags to stores. It will be interesting to see if this happens if the bags are banned. (Have you ever gotten in line behind someone with reusable bags? It seems to take longer to pack those.)

Will Normal be better with the ban?