To the Editor:
So, the city is going to upgrade Verda Lane (“Long-awaited upgrades coming to Verda Lane,” Keizer Times, April 25). “Our goal is to create a safer route for pedestrians and bicyclists,” said Tammy Kunz, president of the Greater Northeast Keizer Neighborhood Association. “Having Verda Lane get done for families means peace of mind.”
Laudable goals.
So what about the other lesser streets west of River Road? They don’t count because they’re not in the affluent part of town?
Roads like Cummings Lane, which has no sidewalks despite many people walking along it and many ignorant drivers zooming up and down it, especially in the evenings? Families living there don’t deserve peace of mind? Lane widening on Verda Lane? Bike lanes? Why, when people take their life into their hands walking up and down Cummings Lane, Juedes Avenue, Evans Avenue and Dearborn Avenue? These streets seem not to deserve sidewalks, let alone bike lanes, and apparently never have.
Of course, we all know why the upgrades go up there and not down here, why they have the slick, clean roads with sidewalks and bike lanes and down here we have to face the traffic head-on and count on luck. All neighborhoods are created equal, but some are more equal than others.
– David Appell, Keizer
