Facebook: Rename Robert Moses State Parkway after Jane Jacobs

[CDL.TO]

Jane Jacobs is well known for her urban renewal policies, and more particularly for her expressway-halting movements. In her day, she successfully stopped major expressways from ripping through urban neighborhoods – namely much the Lower Manhattan Expressway in New York and the Spadina Expressway in Toronto (although the northern section, now known as W.R. Allen Road, was successfully built).

Since here death in 2006, memorials for Jane Jacobs have been introduced, including a Jane Jacobs medal for urban design in New York, as well as a Jane Jacobs Day in Toronto. However, no significant monument has been erected in memory of the great urban warrior.

What a better way to remember Jane Jacobs and also stick it to her arch-nemesis, Robert Moses – the godfather of expressway construction in urban neighborhoods, than to rename the Robert Moses State Parkway (located in Western New York State) after Jane Jacobs.

Join the movement to force the New York State Government to have the Robert Moses State Parkway renamed the Jane Jacobs Memorial Expressway. Invite as many of your Facebook friends as you can to support this worthy cause.

http://ryerson.facebook.com/group.php?gid=25942355120

 

[Hydrogen]

Was Jacobs ever pro-expressway?

Are we down to pitting the memories of two dead people as a means to politically jousting over the past?

Is this a serious proposition?


I hope not.

 

[JasonParis]

A little humorous, but I doubt it's that serious. I don't really agree with it anyway. It would be like naming a Toronto parking lot after her. Jane Jacobs Parkade anyone?

 

[adma]

And considering the revisionist reassessment of Robert Moses lately, methinks this is arriving about 15 minutes past midnight...

 

[ShonTron]

A little humorous, but I doubt it's that serious. I don't really agree with it anyway. It would be like naming a Toronto parking lot after her. Jane Jacobs Parkade anyone?

There's a parking-lot-to-be at Dovercourt and College that could use some additional PR from the Toronto Parking Authority and Adam Giambrone's office.

 

[CDL.TO]

The intent of the group seems to be all in good fun.

 

[interchange42]

It's not such a bad idea in this case as...

1) part of the Robert Moses State Parkway has already been closed where it runs under the Rainbow Bridge near the falls, so that pedestrian access to the American side of the falls is greatly improved...

and

2) the section north from there has been reduced to 2 lanes from 4, with both directions now splitting the former northbound-only lanes. The former southbound-only lanes, running alongside the top of the Niagara Gorge, are now walking trail and bicycle path.

As this expressway devolves into a pleasant urban parkway it speaks volumes for the kind of place people want to live in, namely a Jacobian vision for Niagara Falls is winning out over a Mosian one!

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[ShonTron]

I have been amused how the Robert Moses Parkway has been partially grassed-over or turned into a bike trail, so yeah, it would almost be fitting.

Though it should also be noted that Jacobs would never agree to such a name change (she wanted nothing to be named after her), but would probably find the humour in this proposal.

 

[interchange42]

I don't think we should honour her request. Not that I think that this highway is the best thing to name after her mind you - I'd like to see a park she helped save along the route of the Spadina Expressway south of Eglinton renamed in her honour. That seems pretty fitting to me.

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[CDL.TO]

I'd like to see Spadina Road between Bloor and Davenport named after her.

 

[interchange42]

Wow - radical man!

Toronto never has the guts to rename such major streets after anyone, let alone small ones, whereas anywhere in Quebec you might as well check the street sign outside your home practically every day.

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[Prometheus The Supremo]

why don't they name it "death of great american cities state parkway" ?

 

[adma]

Maybe we should rename the DVP the Moses Znaimer Parkway?

 

[Hipster Duck]

And considering the revisionist reassessment of Robert Moses lately, methinks this is arriving about 15 minutes past midnight...

Yeah, tell me about it. New Yorkers glaze over these days at the mention of a man who "got things done". Of course, Moses was a master builder in the way that Mussolini kept the trains running on time.

We ignore the past at our peril.

I understand that our man from New Haven didn't even know how to drive.

 

[adma]

Of course, Moses was a master builder in the way that Mussolini kept the trains running on time.

Then again, a lot of Mussolini's urbanism's been subject to revisionist reassessment as well...