Monday, August 2, 2010

Small Town

Well July is over by two days already, time to turn over the calendar.  We have had a rainy summer so far, some days I think that some of the flowers are way ahead of themselves..perhaps they just like the excess moisture...or maybe Fall is in the air.
 These flowers are on a side street in town, they are planted in a planter filled with moss..and watered with drip irrigation..it makes for a beautiful flower filled sidewalk.  It is a good thing that this side street is pretty.  Main Street in Park Rapids is going through a renovation..the water and sewer lines will be completely redone.  Far Guy says that they are doing fancy dancy corners and getting new light posts, and center parking is getting a face lift.  I guess new bike racks will be installed, but they don't allow any bike riding on Main.  They also have a no loitering policy, so when this project has been completed you better not hang around and admire it too much or you will get a ticket.  The project begins today..and will stall over the winter and will be completed next year..about a year from now.  Two summers ago the streets were tore up all summer..now the businesses that survived that will undergo another year of construction.
 Coleus
In my opinion, the work should be done in sixty days or less..September and October..work 24 hours a day to get er done. Put up some construction lights and get er done. Work three different crews.  Three city blocks..that is all it is..why in the world is it going to take an entire year?  What do the city planners have against the businesses that are the life blood of their city. The last time this construction company was in town and disrupted the entire summer it became a big joke because they were so slow that grass practically grew under their feet.


Oh what the heck, I am not a shopper anyway, I go into the Hallmark Store once in awhile because Ann is very friendly and if I need something I buy it from her if I can. Her store at least has an back alley entrance. I am not sure what all the stores on Main Street are..many are tourist traps..with the same old stuff that you can buy at any other summer tourist destination..they just change the name of the town.  Same old junk.
 Begonias
We have a Walmart in town now, it has effected Main Street.  Most Walmarts the parking lots are full..not the one in town, you can always find a parking spot near the front.  If Walmart is struggling, you can bet that the rest of the town is not far behind.  The Pamida closed after Walmart came to town, it sits vacant, it was the first discount store to come into town a long time ago.  I see more buildings sitting empty, waiting for new owners.  It must be the "recession" it has finally come to small town America:(

18 comments:

Nezzy (Cow Patty Surprise) said...

Oh honey, take a deep breath and blow some of that 'cool' air down our way. We're havin' a heat wave. Air temps are suppose jump the triple digit and a heat index of 110. Top that with humidity and I can sing like the Wicked Witch of the west....."I'm melting!!!" heeehehehe...

How beautiful your Main Street flowers are. I can just see it now...the jail's filled with people who just stopped to smell the roses!

You have a glorious day sweetie!!!

Pamela said...

mixed emotions about w@lm@rt. very mixed.

talk about some gorgeous color... love it. My begonias are beautiful - but it sure is a lot of work.

This is the first year our downtown has had flowers. Big hanging baskets that have to be watered by a guy in a four-wheeler twice a day. When it is 100 degrees -- I bet they make it three times.
Anyway- my husband was wondering how the town could afford all this stuff -- revenue's down and roads all pot holed. I guess we should plant flowers in "them potholes." Actually - I love the idea. Snort.

We spent 3 days on the west side -- and it was cool and I needed to wear a little jacket. I'm not complaining, really!!!!!

Becca's Dirt said...

Gosh Connie. I hate it when a Walmart comes in. Seems all mom and pop stores will disappear. They can't compete with the Walmart store. I drive 30 miles to a walmart which probably doesn't sound like much but in the Mobile area there are 5 walmarts. Beautiful flowers on Main St. That would be a nice place to sip coffee or soda or whatever - beside the beautiful flowers.

Lo said...

Hey, girl......you and I should be running things........we'd get that damned endless construction done in 2 months flat. I love your plan and schedule.....that's how it oughta be. Sigh.

Those petunias are glorious....what a great idea to line a street with them. I just bought a new batch to refresh my pots around the pool....nothing but pure joy....flowers can cure almost anything. (my own theory)

DJan said...

Those flowers are just gorgeous. And I saw a maple tree yesterday that is beginning to turn, so I know that fall isn't that far away. I don't shop at Walmart because they treat their employees so poorly, not like Costco, for instance.

Nancy said...

I live in a small town (approx. 10,000 souls) and when Walmart opened over ten years ago, downtown took a real hit. As a result, one grocery store closed and several others stores that had been in the community for years. Downtown has recovered a bit, but the Walmart parking lot is always full.

Leah said...

I almost took pictures of the flowers in town yesterday.... funny how we are sometimes on the same photo lane!

lisa said...

Lovely flowers and I can't believe it is august already! It seems like we haven't gotten anything done this year!

Country Gal said...

What a lovely blog! I will definatly be a follower, thankyou for sharing !

Anonymous said...

Those flowers by the sidewalk are so pretty. Like you, I can't believe it would take a year to do what they propose to do.

Lynda said...

The flowers are gorgeous. Do you think that construction company takes a break from your place and comes to work here? The road crews just about caused more than a couple of businesses to shut down around here, too, by their slowness in completing the work.

L. D. said...

The flowers in Minnesota are so much more colorful with your weather. I know when I go to Duluth or Grand Marais I can't believe how much more color is in the plants. It may actually be the light but I like them. Your photos were fantastic. I liked your motion shot. Son in law got to do the honors.

Patsy said...

The colors are better up north, here in south it is so hot.
Patsy

Rita said...

The flowers are breathtaking!! I sure hope they are planning on putting in some benches that people can sit on and enjoy the main street--and maybe no arrest anybody for loitering unless they are there over an hour or some such? Knowing me, I'd be tempted to take a book or a sketchpad and go sit on the main street someplace and wait until they came to arrest me! ;)

I sure hope they get the work done quickly. That has to be terrible for the businesses downtown. I hope they won't keep you away from the Hallmark. But I have nothing good to say about WalMart from personal experience working at one briefly and finding out how they treat their employees.

Karen said...

Georgeous flowers!
The no loitering and no bike riding rules sound ridiculous. It seems like they are trying to make Main Street more pedestrian appealing (if it's nice to look at, you like to walk down it), so hopefully the bylaws will change as well.
Yep, it amazes me how long it takes and how much it costs to get some of these things done, and then you drive by and it seems like half the crew are stood there leaning on shovels.

Alan Burnett said...

Lovely flowers. And I do agree with your thoughts on digging Main Street up. The equivalent of our Main Street in Brighouse was dug up for three months and it had a devastating impact on the town.

Lanny said...

Ugh, workers these days! It is amazing to me how long it takes workers to get a job done, and how much "we" pay for it. The flowers are fantastic though.

DayPhoto said...

WHAT beautiful flowers. Our town used to have amazing displays but the economy got them. They still have some nice ones, but yours are the best.

Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com