Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Barry Niel Stuart on November 1, 2011 at 11:49am

I just wrote my Senators, Kohl and Johnson about preserving funding for bike trails through Transportation Enhancement grants.  They split on party lines with Johnson (R) voting to end TE grants and Kohl (D) voting to keep them.  I've found by my experience that bike trails connect cyclists.

  

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Permalink Reply by millenial removing Bernie tattoo on November 1, 2011 at 11:52am

Chris C said:

Believe it or not there are bike path NIMBY's.  A hilarious example are the homeowners on Rex Blvd in Elmhurst.  They successfully opposed the routing of the Salt Creek Trail on Rex Blvd as well as the path that ran along Salt Creek.  In their opinion the Salt Creek Trail would have increased home burglaries, drug dealers, rapes, child kidnappings, etc.  You would have thought they would have appreciated a bump in property values given that they lived directly down wind of and within sight of a waste treatment plant

Bike Paths are criminal superhighways. People with cars don't need to steal.

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Permalink Reply by Tank-Ridin' Ryan on November 1, 2011 at 12:19pm

Ya, that opposition was successful.  I rode up Rex and then back down a couple hours later a couple weeks ago while riding Salt Creek.

Chris C said:

It's an often repeated selling point in real estate listings here in DuPage. 

 

Believe it or not there are bike path NIMBY's.  A hilarious example are the homeowners on Rex Blvd in Elmhurst.  They successfully opposed the routing of the Salt Creek Trail on Rex Blvd as well as the path that ran along Salt Creek.  In their opinion the Salt Creek Trail would have increased home burglaries, drug dealers, rapes, child kidnappings, etc.  You would have thought they would have appreciated a bump in property values given that they lived directly down wind of and within sight of a waste treatment plant. 

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Permalink Reply by Steven Vance on November 1, 2011 at 12:44pm

If I wanted to do more research on Salt Creek Trail routing, do you have an idea on where to start?

Are there any names of neighbors, community groups, or city councilpersons that you recall I can search on?

I know there's neighbor opposition to trails, and there's probably opposition to the Cal-Sag Trail. (I know there's opposition to the Bloomingdale Trail, but a great planning process I've described in detail has been able to overcome a lot of it.)

Chris C said:

It's an often repeated selling point in real estate listings here in DuPage. 

 

Believe it or not there are bike path NIMBY's.  A hilarious example are the homeowners on Rex Blvd in Elmhurst.  They successfully opposed the routing of the Salt Creek Trail on Rex Blvd as well as the path that ran along Salt Creek.  In their opinion the Salt Creek Trail would have increased home burglaries, drug dealers, rapes, child kidnappings, etc.  You would have thought they would have appreciated a bump in property values given that they lived directly down wind of and within sight of a waste treatment plant. 

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Permalink Reply by Mike Bullis 5.5-6.5 miles on November 1, 2011 at 3:13pm

It's sad, but it's nothing new.

Back the early 1980s, when the Fox River Trail/McHenry Co. Prairie Trail was proposed, the residents(very few at that time)and farmers(many then, few, if any now) between Sandbloom Rd and the abandoned CN&W tracks in Algonquin fought the trail because, in their words, "them bikers will rape our women and kill our cattle".

Homes backed up against the trail, now, usually sell for more than those across the street from the trail. And for something the locals didn't want, don't try to ride on that thing between 10am and 6pm on a Saturday. Just don't.

Chris C said:

It's an often repeated selling point in real estate listings here in DuPage. 

 

Believe it or not there are bike path NIMBY's.  A hilarious example are the homeowners on Rex Blvd in Elmhurst.  They successfully opposed the routing of the Salt Creek Trail on Rex Blvd as well as the path that ran along Salt Creek.  In their opinion the Salt Creek Trail would have increased home burglaries, drug dealers, rapes, child kidnappings, etc.  You would have thought they would have appreciated a bump in property values given that they lived directly down wind of and within sight of a waste treatment plant. 

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Permalink Reply by mike w. on November 1, 2011 at 4:21pm

i'll also add that in the case of rails-to-trails conversions, many of the property owners along the abandoned right-of-way claim squatters' rights. They want to expand their properties by that extra 1/2 acre or so, and will put sheds or their old rusty wrecked vehicles on the land. Some will plant veggie gardens there (BTW, RR R.O.W. is about the most toxic land around... that may explain a LOT!) Same folks who grab that extra few square yards bitch loud and long when the state comes 'round and assesses increased property taxes on their enlarged holdings. Saw just this sort of behaviour down near my in-laws' town in Missouri when there was a proposed R-to-T through their area... the trail never happened. 

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Permalink Reply by Steven Vance on November 3, 2011 at 7:22pm

Do squeaky brakes count?

 

(I'm gonna do a little research on bike trail construction in Chicagoland and NIMBYism, starting with Salt Creek. Anyone know of any current bike trail "controversy"?)

Chris C said:

There are several instances where bike path usage has become regulated due to the close physical proximity of housing.  I'm not talking about things like stop signs, yield signs, car barriers, etc.  I'm talking about "hours permitted trail use" on what was once unregulated trails as well as (my personal favorite) warnings against loud noises on the bike trail during normal hours of use.

 

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Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on November 4, 2011 at 2:29am

Along the Major Taylor Trail, one old lady put a big veggie garden outside her fence in the trail right of way.  Personally, I have no problem with the way she's making use of that space, because she keeps the area clean and keeps on eye on things.  She and I both wish that more of her neighbors would take an interest in keeping the area around the trail nice.

mike w. said:

i'll also add that in the case of rails-to-trails conversions, many of the property owners along the abandoned right-of-way claim squatters' rights. They want to expand their properties by that extra 1/2 acre or so, and will put sheds or their old rusty wrecked vehicles on the land. Some will plant veggie gardens there (BTW, RR R.O.W. is about the most toxic land around... that may explain a LOT!) Same folks who grab that extra few square yards bitch loud and long when the state comes 'round and assesses increased property taxes on their enlarged holdings. Saw just this sort of behaviour down near my in-laws' town in Missouri when there was a proposed R-to-T through their area... the trail never happened. 

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Permalink Reply by Don P on November 4, 2011 at 6:27am

Regarding the Salt Creek Greenway Trail debate in Elmhurst, you can get the full flavor of NIMBYism by going to EPD site: http://www.epd.org/parkboard.asp and download the minutes for board meetings May 24, 2010; July 12, 2010; and my favorite, August 9, 2010.  By the way, the result was to post this sign:

 

 

I don't see this as a "win" for the residents of Rex, Sunnyside, and Fairview - the bike traffic will still be in their neighborhood, and on several different streets, for .7 mi., with a minimum of five 4-way intersections.  The original Rex plan would have resulted in .35 mi with two 3-way intersections.  In my Yelp review of the SCGT, I suggest using Fairview as the link, partly because the main opposition lives on that street.
Steven Vance said:

Do squeaky brakes count?

 

(I'm gonna do a little research on bike trail construction in Chicagoland and NIMBYism, starting with Salt Creek. Anyone know of any current bike trail "controversy"?)

Chris C said:

There are several instances where bike path usage has become regulated due to the close physical proximity of housing.  I'm not talking about things like stop signs, yield signs, car barriers, etc.  I'm talking about "hours permitted trail use" on what was once unregulated trails as well as (my personal favorite) warnings against loud noises on the bike trail during normal hours of use.

 

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