I couldn’t find N&R ed page editor Allen Johnson’s anywhere online, so I went and dug yesterday’s Ideas section out of the recycle bin.
We know the N&R loves the new A&Y greenway ——remember how pissed off they got when some ‘moron’ defaced the Cone Blvd. tunnel. For his part, Johnson does a heck of a job selling it:
There’s so much to like about the greenway:
*Long stretches of shade-covered paths that make afternoon runs more bearable.
*Chances for casual strolling strollers to stop at, say, Herbie’s Diner for breakfast, or Starbuck’s for a cup of coffee along the way.
*Withered vines that grip chainlink fences behind Lawndale Crossing like gnarled fingers reaching from the underbrush.
*An occasional curiosity, such as a tree stump tangled in an overhead power line.
There were a few more, but you get the idea. All this I had to see and experience, so this morning I hopped on my trusty Serotta mountain bike and hopped on the greenway behind Target. OK, the Cone Boulevard is kind of cool, but I’d hardly describe as the ‘work of art’ it’s made out to be. Basically the greenway is what it is —-an asphalt pathway running behind Battleground Avenue, one of Greensboro’s busiest commercial districts. If the back of restaurants and retail stores is your idea of scenery, then you’ll love it. (In fairness, Johnson points out that businesses keep things “surprisingly tidy,” and they do.)
It’s also a perfect example of government and the mainstream media overselling —at inflated cost, mind you —- yet another fad that’s supposed to solve a bunch of society’s ills all at one time.
