Friday, September 12, 2008

NIMBYs Who Destroy Neighborhoods

It isn't my neighborhood, and I can certainly sympathize with people who might not want a new performance venue near them (though this is precisely the kind of location where such venues should be). But what's weird about urban NIMBYism is how often it has a single minded focus on parking. Projects are opposed on the basis of not providing enough parking, and the compromise is the provision of more parking. More parking brings more cars and reduces the appeal of neighborhoods. This particular spot is at the intersection of a trolley line and the El, about as close to mass transit paradise as you get in Philadelphia. I'd much rather have 400 pedestrians walking 150 feet to the El than 400 drunks getting into their cars at 12:30 AM.