My Spring Project

Something has been bothering me, gnawing at me on a daily basis as I drive by it.

It is the West Genesee St. medians across from the Wegmans plaza heading towards Geddes. Here's NYCO's apt description and accompanying "Zapruder film":

I’m sure everyone has had the mind-altering experience of one day looking at something very familiar and suddenly seeing it in a whole new way. Something you might have previously taken for granted, or totally ignored, one day really bugs the crap out of you and there’s no looking back. For me this week, it’s the Route 5/West Genesee Street medians near Wegmans Fairmount.

These are some ugly, ugly medians. They are about 10 feet wide — perhaps more than 20 feet wide in spots — and I can’t ever remember a time when they weren’t shabby-looking and overgrown with weeds, or when the asphalt wasn’t deteriorating. They remind me of footage I’ve seen of Russian cities where nobody much cares about weed control along the streets, or of depressed neighborhoods in American inner cities. I wonder… did these things ever look nice?

Ever since I reading her post, I have been thinking about ways that I could clean up this eyesore, and perhaps inspire others to beautify it.

So I am going to make it my spring project. Since finding out that these medians lie in the Town of Geddes, I think that I will start there at the town meeting. How about a "Welcome to Geddes" sign, a la Strathmore? Surely the members of the board would like to get behind a small beautification project to help brighten their constituents lives.

I think that some tasteful landscaping is possible, perhaps a wild flower bed surrounded by brick pavers? Perhaps a "Sponsored by Lowe's" sign (or Home Depot?) Whoever would like to pony up a (relatively) small donation to get the thing built, and a few hundred dollars a year to keep the flowers growing and the weeds pulled. Not a bad cost for a "in perpetuity" advertisement.

The other disgusting problem - Karma is coming back to bite me on this one - is all of the cigarette butts forming drifts up to the curb, especially off the exit ramp from 695. If you see a sign that says "The World is NOT Your Ashtray", you'll know who put it there. Maybe I can at least get the town to donate a push broom and a dust pan to my efforts.

Anyone interested in helping me push for this, email me at baloghblog [at] gmail {dot} com