I live less than a block away from Ballston's Mosaic Park. Should be one of my favorite spots, right?In the three years I've lived here, I've used Mosaic Park twice. Maybe three times.
Why? Mosaic Park is a lot closer to a parking lot than an actual park. Grass doesn't do well in DC's blistering summer sun unless it's watered, so the park is only green for parts of spring and fall. Without grass to slow the ball, you can't play soccer or toss a baseball -- in either case, any errant ball keeps rolling straight into traffic.Plain and simple, the park looks like no one cares about it. Small trees were planted but never watered, and at least half are now little more than vertical sticks. As you can see in the picture, litter accumulates around the edge of the park, especially cigarette butts. In the winter, the County doesn't bother shoveling the adjacent sidewalk.A jungle gym and small climbing wall were added to one end of the park a couple of years ago, so toddlers get some use out of that. But when we first moved in back in 2004, the Arlington Parks Department told us a basketball court would soon be going in. Since my roommate and I love to play (even though our combined vertical leap is approximately 13 inches), we were psyched. But 2004 came and went with no court, and in early 2005 we were told there was no money to build it.Now there's talk of the park being part of a huge mixed-use redevelopment of the neighboring Metro bus yard. Which would be cool, although Ballston's version of "mixed-use" tends to be "a boring rectangular condo or office tower with a Blimpee on the first floor." And a quick net search shows this isn't the first time a redevelopment of that spot has been planned. Others have fallen through before and so far, the sometimes-leaky bus yard remains.A little depressing? At least for The Green Miles' style? You're probably right. Let's balance it out with Mission Sqwerlpossible (via cuteoverload.com).
I got an email from Arlington County on snow removal on Friday night. Yes, two and a half days after the snow stopped falling. Insert bureaucratic efficiency joke here. Here's part of the email ...The County does not clear sidewalks and applauds residents and proprietors for clearing sidewalks to help neighbors and customers. This makes it easier for children to walk to school, and for everyone to access bus stops, Metro stations, and business areas. The County is asking for everyone, as you are able, to lend a hand to your neighbors and friends to help clear the sidewalks and driveways.
Especially think about your elderly or disabled neighbors, who cannot clear their own sidewalks, porches and steps. Clear access ramps to enable our wheelchair bound neighbors the access they require during these periods when mobility is particularly challenging for them - and check to see if they have enough food and supplies on hand.
As you can see from this picture, Arlington definitely doesn't feel responsible for clearing the 
sidewalks in front of County property. The sidewalk on N. Quincy Street in front of "Mosaic Park"* is a treacherous sheet of ice ... as is the sidewalk in front of the Metro employee parking lot behind that ... and the sidewalk in front of Conte's bike shop behind that ... and the sidewalk in front of the County recycling facility across the street.
However, if you don't clear the sidewalk in front of your property, you're putting your elderly and disabled neighbors at risk, making you worse than Hitler.I'm not saying the county can reasonably be expected to clear every sidewalk in front of every piece of county property, especially when there was a hard freeze so soon after the snow stopped falling. But it does seem antithetical to the County's emphasis on pedestrian friendliness to leave a busy sidewalk like this one completely unshoveled, unsalted, and unsanded. And in light of the guilt-tripping email, it all comes across as a bit hypocritical.* Note on Mosaic Park - the "mosaic" is apparently made up mostly of blades of grass. Quite stirring. More on this in a future post.UPDATE: There's a letter to the editor in the Sun Gazette this week on the same topic.
