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Not So Swift

Judy McGovern comes out reluctantly against the idea that “that Ann Arbor install drawbridges at its entrances and turn away or charge nonresidents who want to get in.” No word on how such a scheme would affect David Brooks’ satirically proposed Liberal Air, which would feature “flights between Madison, Berkeley, Ann Arbor and the New School for Social Research.”

19 Responses to “Not So Swift”


  1. I vote that the first drawbridge be on Washtenaw somewhere west of US23. Keep all of those Ypsi types out. Wait…make that west of Huron Parkway. It gets really tacky beyond that intersection. Actually, our fearless leaders are about the raise the mother of all drawbridges in the form of a city income tax. That should go a long way to keeping the streets empty so cyclists can travel at the leisure along the roads. In fact, a bicycle will be the only affordable means of transportation around here pretty soon.

    posted by Mike Gorund on April 12th, 2004 at 4:38 pm

  2. “It’s a Swiftian idea.” Huh? Not particularly. Swift was a whole lot darker–think baby a l’orange–than just suggesting drawbridges. Um, sorry, Judy.

    posted by Laura on April 12th, 2004 at 8:15 pm

  3. “On the other hand, as I walk down State Street, I worry that future bike lanes could come at the expense of the on-street parking that serves the businesses that are the reason I walk there in the first place.”

    Oh, the precious 12-or-so onstreet spots in front of State Street businesses! The point of the nonmotorized transportation plan is to make it easier for people to get to businesses without the need to drive. And if she walks there, why is she so concerned about a few parking spots? If I hear Ann Arborites bitch about driving/parking in this town one more time… Take the bus, bike, or walk… either that or stop complaining, as you ARE the traffic problem.

    End rant.

    posted by Brandon on April 12th, 2004 at 9:47 pm

  4. Without pointing any fingers, I would like to simply state that a regular biking regimen gets rid of that corn-fed look right quick, although it can’t do anything for bad haircuts.

    posted by Laura on April 12th, 2004 at 9:59 pm

  5. I don’t have any trouble parking in Ann Arbor. Sometimes I drive in to town just to park and then leave again.

    posted by Anonymous on April 12th, 2004 at 10:34 pm

  6. hahaahhaa

    posted by Anonymous on April 12th, 2004 at 10:59 pm

  7. Good man, ! You’re obviously someone who knows the value of a parking place downtown!

    posted by The Dude on April 12th, 2004 at 11:17 pm

  8. Perhaps I should reconsider applying to Umich. One saving quality of my city is that the parking spots downtown are plentiful and free — if there were anything to actually do downtown it might be even better.

    posted by UV Index: Red on April 13th, 2004 at 12:16 am

  9. Yeah! We Ypsi types are ready for a good ol’ drawbridge crashing party.

    posted by T-Steel on April 13th, 2004 at 5:25 am

  10. Hmmm, I like the sound of Liberal Air. At least then I could go visit real towns. :)

    posted by Sara on April 13th, 2004 at 8:34 am

  11. Can the controls for the drawbridge be on the outside? Pretty please?

    posted by torONTo on April 13th, 2004 at 10:29 am

  12. parking downtown - I almost never have a problem parking downtown. Of the last three times I’ve gone to state street, twice I found street parking and the third it was so busy the parking lot (my backup) was full, so I just headed back out and got lunch somewhere else. While there are only a few street spots on state between huron and williams, there are often open spots on state between williams and S. University.

    That intersection really needs a pedestrian bridge or tunnel (SU and state). The students crossing seem to pay NO attention to the cars, like they don’t even matter. And actaully driving through state is about insane right now. If you on liberty trying to make a right onto state, the light turns green for you, and the pedestrians start crossing (its not their turn), then about 2 or 3 cars might get to turn right before the light goes red again (this time to actually allow people to cross)

    For those who don’t realize it, ann arbor is a large place. I’ve walked from AA to Huron & Washtenaw (then got a ride from a friend) and biked about every inch of this town. I’ve also driven on almost every street. For people who live in town walking and biking aren’t always realistic options. I’ve always owned a bike, usually owned a car and always had my feet, I use the transportation that makes sence. There are bad drivers, walkers and bikers in this town. There are also (a few) good drivers, bikers & walkers. If people just throught about others then it could be more reasonable, how we get that to happen is beyond me.

    posted by Just a Voice on April 13th, 2004 at 11:32 am

  13. are these first steps into turning AA into a gated community? what’s next? golf carts for all? YAY!!!!

    posted by riconqueso on April 13th, 2004 at 3:37 pm

  14. I also read “gated community” into this. Is all the drawbridge talk another example of the progressivism and openness to diversity here that I keep hearing about? Sometimes Orange County looks liberal compared to this place . . .

    And Liberal Air would be a terrible thing for AA. If traveling to Berkeley, Madison, or New York were easier, AA might turn into a ghost town. Good thing there’s no history of that in SE Michigan.

    posted by Nick on April 13th, 2004 at 9:02 pm

  15. I was in Berkeley last week, and actually the town itself (barring climate, location, etc) didn’t seem any more impressive than Ann Arbor. I asked a record clerk where the cool non-yuppie, non-undergrad-y bars in town were and she was hard-pressed to come up with any. I ended up at a brewpub that was pretty cool (esp. the outdoor courtyard) and some Irish pub, but that isn’t anything we don’t have here.

    posted by Brandon on April 13th, 2004 at 10:28 pm

  16. Were you at Jupiter? Beckett’s is all right too but I don’t remember them having an outdoor patio.

    One thing they do have in Berkeley that we don’t have here is San Francisco, scenery, good weather, great nightlife, and great restaurants.

    posted by Nick on April 13th, 2004 at 11:07 pm

  17. The nightlife in Berkeley ain’t all that. There’s the Gillman for shows, and lots of good restaurants, and there’s this decent bar that I know how to walk to but can’t remember what street is on. The couple times I got dragged to Oakland I enjoyed that way more, but hell if I can remember the names of any of those places. And if you’re not driving, partaking of SF nightlife can be a serious challenge since the BART stops running so early.

    Berkeley is just as gentrified and annoyingly psuedo-liberal as Ann Arbor. Not to mention way more expensive. They just have better Mexican food (and Amoeba Records). Which actually counts for a lot in my book, so I’ll forgive them.

    posted by Alex on April 14th, 2004 at 8:52 am

  18. Nick, yeah that was Jupiter I was at. Not bad, but nothing especially interesting about it. And the obvious SF/Oakland proxmity, climate, and scenery is great, as is the BART (doesn’t it run til 2?) and Amoeba Records. But the city on its own is a heck of a lot like Ann Arbor, or maybe there is even less there actually.

    posted by Brandon on April 15th, 2004 at 12:24 pm

  19. I think the last BART train leaves SF for Berkeley at just about midnight. Technically BART closes at midnight, although last arrivals are probably shortly after that.

    posted by Alex on April 15th, 2004 at 6:16 pm