What's That Smell?

On the drive back from shopping, somewhere around Dunkin Donuts on Loudon Rd. I began to smell smoke.

As I continued down the hill towards the arena the smell was so strong that I had to close all the car windows. I can't be certain because it's dark but I'm pretty sure there was the haze of smoke. As I drove on I was looking around for emergency lights or the light from a fire but nothing was visible.

The smell reminded me of a trash fire or something of that nature and the large area that I could smell it made me think it was serious.

Somewhere around the intersection of 93 a Concord police cruiser passed going the opposite way so at that point I figured that they might be going to check things out. Actually I thought (due to the intensity of the smell, etc.) that someone must have reported it to the police/fire dept. by that time so there was no need for me to call.

When I got home I decided to call anyway, mainly to ask what the source was, so I called the regular police number (not 911). When I did the woman who answered didn't seem to be aware of the situation and transferred me to the Fire Dept..

Strangely they didn't seem to know anything about it either which was troubling because it had now been close to 15 minutes since I saw the police cruiser driving into the area!

I find it hard to believe that the officer couldn't have smelled the smoke/fumes even if his windows were closed. I also find it disappointing that I was the first one to report something so obvious.

Since then I haven't heard any sirens, which doesn't necessarily mean much, but does mean that there's nothing big going on anyway. I'll be interested to find out what the source was and though I'm tempted to call the Fire Department now I will wait until daytime.

Wait.... my brain just clicked into gear.. (D'oh!) I have a scanner stored [somewhere] that I haven't used since the police started using that 'trunked' system or whatever it's called (you could only hear one side of the conversation, which is annoying). Last I knew the fire communications didn't have that issue. OK, time to search the closets and hook that up..

I'll get to the bottom of this one way or another.....

UPDATE [8/27/09]: Since this incident I've noticed the same smell (albeit not as strong) when passing the Fire Dept. training area next to the Everett Arena, so unless I find out differently I'm going to assume that it's connected with that.

What Does The Future Hold For The Endicott?

The future is uncertain for residents here at the Endicott. This recent article in the Concord Monitor Online is the second that talks about what might be in store for this old building and it's residents. More to come as I speak to some of the people involved.

Same Old Story

Listening to the Diane Rehm Show this morning I hear some great discussion about the future of print journalism. Unfortunately it's obvious that some of the same attitudes that are contributing to their failure are still held.

I agree that a large percentage of quality investigative journalism is done by print. And what I put a lot of value in is persistence and continuity of a story. You rarely get that on TV.

The views expressed by one of the guests that some online blogs only repeat something that they heard somewhere else is entirely true. But while that's obviously true, there are millions of "Blogs", and they cover the entire spectrum from children to professional journalists.

Using that same criteria the same could be said of many "professional" news organizations.
I call it 'parroting', and it can be seen every day from TV news to online news to print. Sometimes it's checked for accuracy and sometimes it's not. Which makes me ask myself "what are all those researchers they have being paid for?". In the rush to compete, the 24 hour news cycle has done more to dilute the quality of the news than anything.

Add to that the consolidation of news orgs to the point that the small amount of "news" the average citizen makes time for is controlled by so few that the job of 'the 4th estate' is far from being served.

The reluctance of the 'dinosaurs' of journalism to change with the times is the greatest factor in their potential demise than anything else. By clinging to their arrogant and conceited attitudes regarding what they like to generalize as "blogs/bloggers" they're demonstrating that they just don't 'get it'. So much of the industry reacted in a defensive manner instead of thoughtfully and with open minds.

As I'm now learning personally and have observed with my father in his later years, (of course I'm generalizing here) the older you get the more resistant to change you become.
Things are changing so fast, plus, the perception of the speed at which things appear to change increases the older you get.

So is it inherent that organizations headed largely by an older generation are resistant to change, especially at the rate that's neccessary to change with the times and technology?

Trust in the accuracy of reporting is essential. Unfortunately that trust has been eroding for many of us that really pay attention to these things. Political influences have in all too many instances been injected into the process. 'Fair and impartial reporting' is hard enough to maintain through the process of delivering news. From the first person to tell others what happened on a hunting expedition to today it's a constant struggle to keep personal bias from unduly influencing the report. From the headline to the bottom line there are so many ways to influence a reader or viewer. I see too many similarities between the tactics of the advertising world and news organizations being used today.

If the majority of Americans were aware of the sloppy reporting and intentional deception as shown by people like those that run and contribute to "Media Matters" their trust would sink!

So as I hear these dinosaurs expressing the same ignorant attitudes today I'm not surprised one bit that their part of the industry is going the way of their namesake. It's a shame that they're taking a lot of good people below them down with the ship.

Your Tax Dollars at Work

I'm not sure how to describe what happened early this morning so let me start at the beginning....

I left my apartment to get some groceries and drop off my rent check a little before 5 AM.
My car was parked in the new parking garage. As I started to exit (I needed to go left on Storrs St. towards the intersection) I stopped because the road was blocked by a solid barrier of snow preventing me from going across to the proper lane and plows were plowing in the other.

In the lane closest to me there was a plow coming my way.

That plow driver went right by, oblivious to my dilemma. There was another plow around the intersection of Pleasant St. extension and Storrs St..

Still unsure what to do I pulled out and braced to blast through the pile of snow to get into the correct lane. Once I got further out into the road I discovered that there wasn't a lane on the other side of the snow pile.. just more snow!

By that time the other plow was coming towards me. I was in the center of the road, (semi-stuck) and the plow just continued on by, literally plowing snow within a foot or two of my car and scaring the crap out of me.

I yelled and waved for him to come help me. He backed up and basically yelled at me (something like 'what are you doing in the road!').

Stop and think about that for a moment.... I was leaving a city parking garage, they clearly saw me sitting at the exit wanting to get out but drove right by. They had snow piled up in a solid barrier blocking the north-bound lane (Storrs St.) and part of the intersection, no signs or any direction for drivers trying to navigate their maze of snow piles, and instead of stopping and providing me with some direction the driver yells at me? Then he makes my situation worse by plowing more snow around my car! All I could see was a pair of bright headlights coming at me, a huge plow, and I literally didn't know if I was going to get hit.

After that I managed to gun the engine and plow through the snow (that the plow had just made deeper) into the wrong lane and made it to the intersection. I headed up to Main St. hoping to find a Concord Police cruiser somewhere, drove by the police station but it was closed, drove towards the south end a ways but seeing no police I headed back towards Storrs St..

Why?

Well first of all I was fairly mad.... Though 'incredulous' would be a more appropriate word.

Second, I had a video camera (which [thankfully] had been recording since exiting the parking garage*) and I wanted to get more shots of the road including the entrances to the shopping center which were inaccessible.

Third, there is a part of me that seriously dislikes mean people and especially ones on the public payroll!
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If I just blew the incident off nothing would be learned and the same dangerous situation could repeat itself, possibly with disastrous results. This kind of behavior has to be punished and corrected so hopefully it doesn't happen again.
That is my goal.
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- So to continue.. I went back down onto Storrs St. and tried to see if the entrance to the shopping center down by the state liquor store was accessible. It too was blocked but not as badly as the others, so I made my way through the snow (almost getting rear-ended by some guy who stopped, honked, and yelled at me, failing to realize that he was going too fast and following much too closely for the conditions).

After that I got shots of the plows at work and the road conditions. At one point I tried to flag down one of the plow drivers (to ask why they hadn't assisted me) but he ignored me and drove right past!

At that point I decided to go on my way and do my shopping but there was one problem.. all the exits were blocked by the barrier of snow the plows created. After sitting at the northernmost exit (while the plows were driving past ignoring me) I had to get out of my car and gesture to one of the drivers to plow a spot in the snow so I could get through.

So there's your tax dollars at work....

And please don't get me wrong.. as I've said on this blog before, I have great respect for the plow drivers and other workers working long hours clearing the streets.

That said, some common courtesy, and a recognition of the need for public safety while they move the snow around is crucial. Ignoring drivers, yelling at them, and scaring them by plowing dangerously close to them is negligent and borders on criminal behavior, and I for one won't tolerate it.

I'm exploring different options at the moment, and I'm preparing (and making copies of) the video** for potential public display on the Internet, and/or as evidence to show relevant public officials/representatives if need be.

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Plus there are additional issues concerning the city's care (or the lack of) of the stairs next to the dumpster which (too many times) have been left unshoveled/icy, and extremely dangerous (as my sore tailbone can attest to!). Also the adjacent stairs leading down into the new parking garage have been left in a similar condition. That says to me that the safety of the citizens using that area isn't important to those whose job it is to maintain it.
Seriously, how much time and effort is required to clear the snow and/or spread some sand on the ice?

If necessary I'll suggest a meeting of all the people involved at some point this spring including CATCH/MB Management, relevant city department reps, and our Councilman Allen Bennett.

But that really shouldn't be necessary, should it?

I just want to nail down who's responsibility it is to keep the area clean and safe and have someone lite a fire under their butt to make sure it stays that way.

If there are city manpower/budget issues then some form of shared coverage by MB Management, The Green Martini, and The Lighting Place should be looked into.

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* I recently started taking a video camera every time I go out
(for many reasons).
So fortunately in this case it's not my word against theirs....

**For the moment I'm not going to post the video here
(or anywhere else) but that could change....
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Does Anyone Think This Is Acceptable?

How long before someone takes responsibility for this area and starts keeping it clean?

Does the person responsible for this area have any reasonable excuse for letting this disgusting mess persist like it has? Do they have any pride in their job, or the city of Concord?

Is it a matter of money or personnel?

I for one would like to know the answer to all of these questions, and I'd like to see it cleaned up and kept that way.

Would it be left like this if the Mayor, City Manager, or other officials had to walk by this every day? I doubt it..

People using the dumpster or the stairs next to it frequently have to avoid stepping on garbage, trash, broken glass, etc.. The source of the garbage/trash not disposed of properly is mainly from certain residents of the Endicott, and the nearby restaurant-bar.

There's no doubt the area needs to be cleaned up and maintained. All the parties involved including the sources of the mess and those responsible for maintaining the area need to get together and come up with a solution. This disgusting and frankly embarrassing situation can't be allowed to persist any longer.

The above images are all recent and show the varying states of the area surrounding the dumpster next to the new parking garage's north side.

Dangerously Narrow City Roads

Yesterday I noticed it up on Loudon Rd. by Applebees Restaurant. Today as I was driving over by Franklin Pierce Law Center it was even worse.

I'm talking about the narrow roads people are forced to navigate in Concord.

I'm trying to figure out why some roads aren't being plowed to a reasonably safe width, and why cars are allowed to park on both sides of many streets. In some places there's barely enough room for two cars to pass each other, and other streets where there isn't even that much room.

Up on Loudon Rd. if you're in the right-hand lane heading east you are forced into the left lane in places because literally half of the right lane is taken up by the snow bank.

Someone needs to explain to me why the plow drivers don't plow the snow the full width of the road [everywhere]. I'd also like to know why this situation is allowed to persist for so long. I would hope that as the Concord Police and/or the supervisors from the Highway Department drive around Concord they would see this (it's hard to miss) and report it. It shouldn't ever get to the point where it is now.

I hate to say much concerning the plow drivers this year. They've had it rough. But now it's become a safety matter, especially when combined with the fact that the sidewalks are impassible and pedestrians are forced into the streets.

Narrow streets, cars parked on both sides, and pedestrians forced to walk in the road is a recipe for accidents and possibly even fatalities. I can understand that on some streets where houses are close to the side of the road it might be impossible to push the snow back any further, but on the streets I've mentioned that's not the case. There's no excuse for letting the snow banks encroach into the road to the point that cars have to cross into the opposite lane. That's unacceptable and threatens the safety of drivers.

I didn't see a single car ticketed that was parked on the sides of any of the streets over by the Law Center, or anywhere else for that matter. Isn't that the job of our Police department? To maintain safety on our streets and in our community? From the dangerous drives around Concord I've had lately I'd have to say they've dropped the ball, as have the supervisors in the Highway Dept.

*UPDATE [2/23/09] - Almost a year later and I see the same thing happening (in the same places). On top of that, I reported unshoveled and icy steps leading to the new parking garage to a young Concord Police officer I saw at D'Angelos afterwards only to be told to "report it myself"!
Not in a mean-spirited way, but all the same I was under the impression that the police were there 'To Protect and Serve' and this was a 'public safety issue' was it not?

I immediately thought about what the City Atty's office would think of this. I've personally slipped more than once on those steps and the ones by the dumpster and I'm relatively fit. What about older folks?

At the end of the day shouldn't someone from the city make sure ALL city property is safe and kept that way?

Update 2: - I want to add that overall the great majority of Concord Police officers have been helpful and professional, and it's not fair to them to be tainted by the actions of [the inevitable few] 'bad apples'!

The Endicott Building Needs Help!

Here a couple of shots of our front entrance. When it comes time to start fixing this place up, the entrances would be a good place to start. Why no one has put forth the effort to even wash the dirt off in the five years I've lived here is troubling. The trim next to the door needs to be replaced and then the whole entrance needs to be painted. The entrance to Butter's restaurant/store just north of the Endicott on Main Street would be an excellent color and look to copy.



Below is one of the side entrances and the surrounding areas. Someone please tell me who chose this color! Unfortunately this section of the building is separately owned, so getting the whole exterior of the building repainted is going to take some consultation and all parties working together to make happen. I understand that assistance is being sought from a historical preservation fund (possibly the NHPA?) by the owner (Peter Shapiro?) of this part of the building that includes Pachamama and The Green Martini.
Lets hope that he is successful.
I know that everyone concerned, from the business owners (and their patrons) to the Endicott residents, other business owners in the neighborhood, and Concord residents who want to see a rejuvenated downtown, want to see this building renovated.