Dorie Rae Gallagher said "Getting back to Uptown...we have a Downtown...we don't need two." "I can see some 3-4 stories but that is personal preference. I like to see sky, open spaces, unique buildings and not rubber stamped housing that's 12 stories creating shadows and mold on the neighbors." "just am not into high density housing. Never lived in an apartment building where I needed to walk down a hallway to apartment such and such and become known by that number."
Nick Responds: No one will cofuse Uptown for Downtown because of 12 a story building. What would be unique about more 3 and 4 story buildings? Tall buildings do not block out the sky especially at 12 stories. In fact a tall slender building can allow a developer to preserve more open space than a shorter, squatter building. Wouldn't a 12 story building be the epitomy of unique in Uptown at this point? [TB] The Lagoon project may bring back to Uptown the uniqueness that it has lost. A decade, even more, ago there were more of the one of a kind shops, shops that you wouldn't find anywhere else. Now Uptown has The Gap, Kinko's, McDonald's and Panera Bread as its largest fixtures. With the possible exception of McDonald's, each of those places does have some redeeming value, but they all have other locations that on a nice day many of us might even consider walking to. Instead of fighting change, embrace it. A few hundred day time workers who will not only shop places on their lunch break, but tell others of that special place they find will enable those one of a kind places to exist. Add a strong residential core and those places can even thrive. Minneapolis will never be Tokyo, we'll never even have the density of New York City. That doesn't mean that we can't be smart enough to mix uses. There is no rational reason to create retail/commercial space that doesn't have residential above it. While Uptown may currently be losing out to Northeast as a desirable developing area to live, it doesn't necessarily need to. It to has people interested in making improvements to the area and several sites that are prime for improvement. Rather than complain that property tax rates are increasing at to rapid of a rate, its time to support projects that not only make the city more desirable but increase that tax base at the same time. That is a way that the city may be able to afford the level of service that we seem to desire. Terrell Brown Loring Park REMINDERS: 1. Be civil! Please read the NEW RULES at http://www.e-democracy.org/rules. If you think a member is in violation, contact the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[email protected] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
