nowensone

If there are government type secrets of this nature then I'd LOVE to hear them, but I'm not sure society is yet ready. If disclosure has been avoided due to fear of anarchy, then I'd say we're not past such a likely scenario. In my opinion of course. But makes one think back to last year when the Vatican released the news that it was ok to believe in aliens, was this a transition-like announcement to better prepare people for the obvious religious turmoil that would result from the discovery of aliens? There's a conspiracy theory for you...

Asphalt and concrete or transit related funding? I'd hope that high Ozone levels would lead to more dollars for transit projects/maintenance, not less, though I could certainly see the argument for less road building. While it wouldn't be popular, a hefty hike in the gas tax would be perfect right now - it would artificially raise the cost of gas, causing an increase in transit usage, and at the same time create more money for transit. Except for those commuting from SC...

^Forgot about that, you're right, I may try to see what actual time difference the 19 miles makes sometime soon, but I think even this short distance probably makes replacing the bridge worthwhile..

^I'm not sure why it says this, but I drive these all fairly often, pretty sure many of you guys have as well, I-85 skirts GSO to the east if taking the loop, but even if you don't do this, Statesville is at least 50 miles from GSO, where I-77 terminates, so I don't see how it could be only a 19 mile difference.

^ It adds at least 50 miles, if you're taking the new loop then even more, if memory serves, Statesville and dt Greensboro are close to 70 miles apart.

^Maybe, but it is one hell of a coincidence that Reese is the one atempting to buy it, as opposed to any number of developers. If his stated goal is to put up a hotel and shopping (don't remember exactly what the article had said) then he is trying to make this a destination, but isn't the Fort Mill park away from town? Wouldn't seem to fit, and if his goal is for a Charlotte MLB team then seemingly he'd save his resources for that eventuality, or begin building in DT Charlotte for it.

^ That's what my intuition was saying to me when I read about his latest actions. Yahoo had a nice front-pager yesterday about professional teams that were most likely to leave their current homes, among these several baseball teams (I recollect the Royals, Rays and oft-mentioned Marlins as front-runners), so it could be Reese is homing in on one of these. But the economy now simply does not support expensive public-subsidized stadium building (which the article thankfully took note of), I just don't get what he is thinking. Perhaps Reese has some vendetta that has not come to light.

Trees. Tall, wide trees. You'll never be the wiser.

^ Nice... did I hear that correctly? Is that our Mobuchu?

^ Weird, I would have insisted and sworn uptown to be farther away than this, are you at full zoom and is this a blow up of a much larger photo?

If the street is redone in something like brick or cobblestone, or is at the same grade and contiguous with the sidewalks on either side, drivers will naturally avoid it, or travel extremely slow on it, kids and adults suddenly walking out into it is not going to be an issue.

^ There remains the argument that it is more efficient, fiscally and environmentally, even with all other factors are removed.

I think that's the perfect solution, it's been said that brick is not possible depending on who owns the street (city or state), but the added benefit of something like brick or cobble stones is that it will slow cars since people will likely cross between the two sides of the park often.

^ That's kind of the point though, if your costs of living are low you are going to be able to build wealth much easier.

Wow, someone else knows what Jennifer Government is. Not too many people on that site 4+ years ago.

If CATS were a free service I would be concerned about the event riders, but since they are paying their numbers must be viewed as a valid portion of the whole (and something to be expected long term). Residents of top cities use trains/subway for virtually everything, certainly including a night on the town, so availability must be there IMO.

Just now read TozMervo's link to Wiki, sounds like they do make decent "pets", being the most trainable bird for falconry. And survive and live in urban areas, and eat pretty much anything rabbit sized on down. It is nice to know that they [at least] aren't harmed by human city building, and Charlotte does have more trees than is normal to compensate.

^ That's a once-in-a-lifetime shot... damn nice. It's too bad they don't make natural pets [the hawk].

My random and silly contributions:

^ np Missed that one somehow Mo, this should be on a magazine cover. Likewise, this shot would be great as an oversized wall picture or a huge puzzle.

I've wondered the same thing myself, Wiki tells you that it is generally rural, underpopulated and econonomically insignificant today, though historically it was much more significant. I've asked my father in-law (3rd gen German-American who speaks the language and has travelled the country several times) but he had never been there and didn't know much about it. I'm determined to visit Mecklenburg one day (supposedly I have an ancestor from nearby Lubeck).

This is a good description of Houston's line actually, as others have said the riders there are using it mainly as a convenience - after they have driven somewhere nearby in automobiles. It's line goes from downtown through the Medical Center and ends at the Astrodome. There is a zoo and a few cultural attractions along the way, but essentially the line does not serve urban dwellers, or pass through residential areas. There are suburban style apartment complexes in the vicinity of a few stops, but are in no way TOD, and are deceptively far away. Until it's line is extended to residential neighborhoods south of 610, it will remain a tool for drivers and event-goers [who drove]. Houston's line is not a good alternative to the automobile. CLT's park and rides seem a similar concept but are generating less car travel due to distance from DT, and Lynx is actually used in lieu of automobiles for many (my impression anyway) and flows through what is or will be true urban/TOD geography. Not to discredit Houston, but it's line was developed more as a novelty item for a large city that felt it needed to keep up with other large cities, and many protested it's funding not because they were anti-transit but because it's route and design didn't make much sense. In following CLT's Blue Line years ago while living in Houston I had the sense Charlotte was also vying for token big-city bragging rights, but in actually seeing and riding it it is a much different experience, and will actually be useful and blend in. I think that is due to the planned TOD zoning around it's path, the fact that there was available space for such development and that it actually connects residences with places of work.

Exactly, I know that picture from UP, but when displayed at one inch by one inch, I did a similar double take. You can just see BoA's crown and of course One Wach, otherwise, this could be pretty much any city when you're squinting at it on a monitor...

Don't place too much stock in these as they appear on Yahoo at least weekly from any number of sources, but we won Relocate-America's top spot: link. I think the shot they used is interesting as well. Makes us look like we have a delimiting body of water...

^ I think it all the time, everyone else probably does too, so you only said what many are thinking. I kind of like the idea of a Viking funeral, put my body on a small boat of some kind and put me out to sea (or a lake, obviously I won't be picky) and let it burn. Of course I think that is illegal here.