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« July 2007 | Main | September 2007 »
Political Wire has a post on Joe Biden's new book making the best seller list, the New York Times has it as number 15, total sales between 8000 and 15,000. The web site also mentions you can buy Promises to Keep:On Life and Politics at Amazon.
Well, best seller...? Amazon has it ranked at 8115, hardly a barn burner. As contrast, take the new book on the Duke LaCrosse case, Until Proven Innocent, by Stuart Taylor and K.C. Johnson, not even on sale yet. Amazon has it at 666.
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As I rounded the corner to home yesterday afternoon, I saw people in the front yard. Hmmm, I wonder who's at the house? It was our daughter and grandson Christian who came to surprise us for the Labor Day weekend. Son in Law, Darren flys in this morning. Christian and Lizzie went with us to the seminary picnic for first year students last night and he got a stress-relieving soccer ball. We need the stress relieving soccer ball!
The Collinsville city council should pass out little stress soccer balls before their meeting on the tenth. Heh
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The residents of Gaylord Street are in the home stretch. The city council will be the final word on whether or not their entire street remains in R-1 residential zoning when they meet in a special session on Tuesday night, September 4 at 6 p.m.
The Planning Commission voted to recommend the property in question, 102 Gaylord, remain R-1 and the final decision rests with the council. The council decided to hold this meeting on Tuesday because their regular meeting on the 10th will be taken up with what looks like a long meeting involving the MLS soccer plan.
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Senator John Danforth was on KMOX with Charlie Brennan this morning discussing the possibility of St Louis getting some of the Arch grounds from the Federal Parks Service in order to make the riverfront more inviting.
In the course of the conversation the former senator quoted his wife Sally as having once said about the St Louis area, "Five people with placards can change anything."
For both the Illinois and Missouri side, so true.
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Lake Tawakoni State Park near Dallas has many entomologists buzzing over a 200 yard long spider web has appeared, engulfing dozens of bushes and even the weedy ground.
Probably the best mosquito trap ever found.
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Collinsville put up new stop signs on Main Street at two corners which never had them before and the story about this in the Belleville News-Democrat produced quite a few comments, many of which are pretty over the top. The most interesting thing the paper did was make a video of cars at the new stop sign intersection. Most whiz on through, the scariest thing to see was seeing a kid on a bike going through the crosswalk just before a number of trucks and cars made no attempt to stop.
The video link is at the bottom of the photo accompanying the article. Good idea and good job by the paper's Steve Nagy.
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St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay and former Missouri Senator, John Danforth are joining forces in an attempt to free up some of the riverfront park land from the federal park service in order to develop the grounds. They believe having the federally owned land makes it impossible to boost use of the riverfront.
Let's face it, the St. Louis riverfront is a nightmare to get to and when you get there, other than the Arch, it's pretty, but boring. Pretty boring. Nothing to do but walk around.
The two men expect opposition not only from locals who like the pastoral setting, but from the government. To gain back some of the grounds and construct an access over/under interstate 70 will take an act of congress and broad public support. Danforth called it an "embarrassment" that the Arch grounds and Interstate 70 have become barriers between the city and the Mississippi River. He asked, "Do you see any sign of human life?"
Minneapolis/St. Paul has a great riverfront, even Memphis does, Baltimore has a neat waterfront and so does Chicago. Actually most cities with a waterfront have attempted marvelous things. All but St. Louis which now finds themselves having to go up against the feds in a battle few, if any, have ever won.
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More development interest in the St. Louis area and more opposition. It seems the two things go hand and hand. Any proposal brings out opposition either organized or individual.
In Town and Country, a wealthy suburb of St. Louis, private school, The Principia, wants to develop 175 unused acres out of the 360 acres they own. Opposition has begun. Residents plan to start erecting lawn signs opposed to even the consideration of such an idea. "Some see the entire idea as an assault on the affluent city's character, defined by its minimum one-acre lots for residential housing and pastoral green space. Town and Country, population 10,894, is among the area's wealthiest communities, with a median household income at nearly $140,000 and median home value at $463,200, according to 2000 U.S. Census figures. NIMBY
In Florissant residents protest an proposed 18 home project, with the new homes expected to sell for $250,000 because these homes would not be compatible with the area. "We have much larger homes with large yards and we are very concerned it will cause flooding problems."
Everything is opposed these days. The folks in Fenton have even begun to oppose a new cell phone tower.
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This morning's Post-Dispatch prints two letters to the editor in support of Jeff Cooper's proposed soccer stadium/business park/residential home project in Collinsville.
Steve Murphy of O'Fallon Missouri writes: "As a former employee of the old Storm and Ambush soccer teams, Major
League Soccer Rapids and an avid soccer fan and player, I truly believe
in this project Mr. Cooper has developed.
It's not the soccer aspect, but the entire development with homes,
businesses and fields that interests me. The potential MLS team and
stadium is a bonus.
I now live in O'Fallon, Mo. I would be extremely interested in moving
into one of the homes in the development. My entire spending habits
would therefore be all of Collinsville's gain. So, Jeff Cooper shoots,
Collinsville scores.
The second letter from Michael Parkus of Olivette Missouri takes issue with Kevin Horrigan's Sunday column (Yay). Parkus writes: "I take exception to Kevin Horrigan's description in "Collinsville (yes, Collinsville) goes big league" (Aug. 26) of an English Premier League game between Arsenal and Blackburn Rovers as tedious because the game ended in a 1-1 tie." "To put that into baseball perspective, imagine the Cardinals playing the Cubs. It's a pitchers duel, and after nine innings neither side has scored a run. After 12 innings, finally the Cards get a home run with nobody on. Such a game could last four hours. Would Mr. Horrigan call the baseball game tedious?"
On the one hand we see someone so interested in the total plan put forth by Cooper that he would consider moving to Collinsville (yes Collinsville). The other makes a point which is becoming more and more an indication that interest in soccer is growing, much as the older sports writers complain.
All this in aid of hoping those who have been voicing opposition and disapproval will give this some time. Let the city work with the developer to see what can be done. It seems unfair to rail against something before all the facts are known.
As to the issue of the schools, I believe the city will do everything they can to make things fair for Unit Ten and that a possible influx of new residents, which can only happen gradually, would actually help the school district. What do we hear so much? Oh, Edwardsville and O'Fallon are so much better. I don't agree with this notion, but new people who come to Collinsville expecting good educational programs can only be for the good. New blood energizes, something Collinsville has not had much of in a long time. A different perspective, one that doesn't automatically cry foul.
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Katie and Charlie have a new addition, a furry bundle of Wheaton Terrier they named Riley. First order of business, getting to know Sam the rabbit who has been quite used to being an only child pet. Click to enlarge
They have become sort of pals, providing Riley knows his place.
Then it was time to check out the flowers, this time the heliotrope.
How about a snack? If those humans won't help me, I'll help myself.
Time for a nap.
Someone call me? I'm awake!...barely...
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