The Observation Deck

Out and about this morning. I found nothing impassable (less than 24 hours after Armageddon - aka "Euclid" - hit us). Good job Public Works!

Ryan Salo wrote:

Jill Jusko wrote:According to the mayor's Twitter account: "up to 18 plows working on lkwd rds. will work all night in 12 hr shifts. each plow runs 5 mile loops. shift changes at midnight & 3AM"

That is interesting. The streets department at city hall says we only have 7 trucks. I wonder which is correct, that is a big discrepancy.

It is also interesting that the Mayor tweeted that at 6:00pm. Which was after the storm had ended. 3 hours later a large chunk of the city was still not plowed and RR was done. If we really have 18 trucks covering 93 miles, the entire city should be complete in no time, especially once the snow stops.

Ryan,

It's a word game.

City Hall probably only has 7 "snow plow trucks," but may have more "trucks with snow plows” ... so 18 plows may be right.


Compare a "snow plow truck” …




... with a “truck with a snow plow” …




… and …


... let’s not forget about Jim …




Matt

Davis Court at 7am. Lakewood's forgotten street looks plowed.


Bikes were on the road.


Transversion by Peter Diepenbrock, could use a little cleaning.


or not, it looks nice with the snow and the shingles.


from all angles.



Well, Euclid huh?

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Matthew John Markling wrote:

This has to be the most "Photoshopped" image ever in the history of the Lakewood Observer.

Corey

Half of my family, myself included, have deep western Pennsylvania roots. For that reason, we often smile a bit when so-called" big snow" warnings are forecast around here.

Want a REALLY big snow? Hang around western Pennsylvania for a December day or two. Try driving on mountain roads in two to three feet of snow regularly. Try shoveling 100 ft. of 3-foot depth snow off your mountain walkway, and then off 30 ft. of stairway going down to your car. For that matter, try finding WHICH snow drift your car is under! That was MY Pennsylvania!

You didn't even have to MAKE a snowman either. Be still for 15 minutes where I came from, and you WERE a snowman!

We stopped by the grocery store to pick up a few things before the snowflakes fell yesterday. You would have thought that it WAS Armageddon. You even had to wait for a shopping cart. The lines were awful, but what was really funny was what people were putting into their carts... Some carts were piled high with beer and pretzels, some with cat food, some with enough milk and bread to feed and water a platoon of soldiers. Amazing how "Armageddon" affects people.

Lack of faith? Panic picnic? Who can say, but all those poor citybillies being scared of a few snowflakes was just pitiful to behold, as they trembled above the cliffs of their little Rocky River canyon.

We, who knew the black and gold well, once had THREE rivers in OUR backyard.

You'uns KNOW what SUNDAY will bring, eh?

Armageddon?

Try not to panic too much, when you make your little snow angels this week, Lakewood.

Try not to cry either...

Oh yeah, back on topic....

...constructive suggestion?

Could city plow operators PLEASE lift their plowblades when coming to a driveway? It's quite a bit of work to shovel out that miserable driveway apron ice after the trucks go by.

Back to the banjo.

Lots of us have special relationships with our snow shovels. We grip them tight. We work them hard all winter long. We put our backs into it. Those of us who are profoundly experienced in the manual removal of snow have learned that our efforts will be rewarded with clean driveways, deep sleep, and -- the following morning -- a special kind of buzzing feeling in our backs and shoulders. It doesn't have to be that way. You could just hire someone.

But for those of you who are committed to that kind of hands-on, deep winter engagement, I offer this public service announcement. After extensive research and experimentation, I bring you "the Snowman Technique" of driveway snow removal. You are hereby encouraged to try this at home.

http://gyroscopethattakesyouplaces.word ... -clearing/

Loved the article, Michael!

Thanks for all that you do!

Back to the banjo. (The open-back model makes for a great snow shovel. )

Happy New Year all. Stay warm.

Michael - Your creativity never ceases to amaze me!

I am SO inspired to go out and build a snowman (tomorrow).

We all need more snowmen in our lives!

A mini snowman on our (currently-unused-because-it's-winter) front porch rail! To understand scale: the eyes and mouth are sunflower seeds.

Wonderful photo, Peter! We could all use more snowmen in our lives.

This explains why it takes all night to clear the city after a snow fall.

This is 1 of the 18 plows....

Seriously though, the city seemed to be more on top of things with the last snow fall. One of the seven trucks was pre-salting Clifton before the snow even started. It was great to see.

Ryan,

Seeing you this morning reminded me of this thread.



Matt

Matt,

Trying to drive in Lakewood yesterday and today reminded me of this thread. We must be conserving our salt because it sure appears we are using WAY less than surrounding cities.

You know reading this thread would make one think city services have fallen apart in the past three years.

But I could not help but notice, the age old axiom is gone. "You can tell when you get to Lakewood because
the streets are clean and plowed."

No longer even close to true.


Lake Road, Lakewood 9:45am 1.1.2014


Lake Road, Cleveland 9:47am 1.1.2014

But the problem is multi-fold here, and of course it all goes back to city hall.

But it raises some real questions...

1) How many cuts can a city make before it services really start to suck and fail?

2) Is this part of the ever widening gap between residents, and city hall/business?

3) Where is this massive pay off we were promised for whoring out Detroit and soon Madison?
a) If it works shouldn't are services be better?
b) What are the actual numbers for increased revenue from Detroit and Madison? Developments?
1) How is that huge wave of new money being spent? Or residential neighborhoods, who funded
the commercial build up.

4) Trucks are going by every 30 minutes here, and not keeping up on it. I have not seen any city workers
slacking off while plowing. What is needed?

Dr. Tom Bier of CSU's Levin College of Urban Affairs believes-
When a city starts to drastically cut the services, especially those that differentiate from other
cities in the area, and start to cause drastic harm to that community.

According to Dr. Tom Bier "People want services, and they are willing to pay for them."

In a study from 2001, Dr. Bier places a heavy emphasis on the needs of a city to deliver
great services to its residents, "Home values across a metropolitan area are the result of various factors
(besides the structure itself) such as location, schools, and city services."

Make no mistake, in a region of declining population, we are in a war with other communities for quality residents.
Our battle is not to see how quickly we can homogenize ourselves with everyone else, but how to
find our brand define our brand, and amplify that brand.

Is this why we are carrying trash to the curb?


Or does it make more sense to differentiate in ways that make a residents life better?


These illustrations were used in 2006 on the deck to indicate some fears like lowering city
services and parks, chain stores, etc.

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Be glad you are not in Manitoba: