[Summit] Icy sidewalks

Wed Mar 11 21:50:32 UTC 2015

Note: I didn't start this rant. I never thought that seconding a
complaint on a message board would have any effect on anyone's
behavior. I certainly never appealed to the law. (What we are legally
required today is beside the point and of dubious authority.) And I
never pointed any fingers and demanded excuses. That's not my role in
the world.

Hence, I really don't care to address the validity of your excuse. No
one was pointing at you. Besides, it's just not relevant to the
general problem.

Back to the issue: It's simply preposterous that the entire city is
75% filled with frail elderly people with back problems and pregnant
women living alone. So what accounts for all the unshoveled snow?

On Wed, Mar 11, 2015 at 4:51 PM, Sheila Judkins <shejudkins at gmail.com> wrote:
> Aaron,
> I normally stay as far away from these email chain rants as possible but in this case I feel the need to address your supposition.
> Two years ago I hired a different snow remover who left beer cans in my driveway, hit the side of my house and never showed up again which left me pregnant shoveling all last season with my toddler in a stroller.
>
> This year very early in the season i asked THIS list for snow removal recommendations and didn't receive a single response.
>
> I'm not saying that there is only one option, just that we might make more progress with snow removal by offering help to our neighbors than to sit behind a computer and accuse people of being lazy.
>
> Yes I know snow removal is the law but in the depths of winter when babysitters can't drive on the road, ask me if I am going to leave my kids unattended or make sure my sidewalk is clear and there answer is clear.
>
> Nobody is beyond reproach but typically people respond better to kindness than rudeness.
>
> Sheila
>
> On Mar 11, 2015, at 3:28 PM, Aaron Smuts <asmuts at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> What we've learned so far:
>
> There is only one snow shoveler for hire in RI and he only works odd hours.
>
> Those with snow blowers should work for their lazy neighbors for free.
>
> There is no point shoveling the sidewalks on part of a street unless
> the entire street is shoveled.
>
> And everyone is beyond reproach, except for us judgmental types.
>
>
>
>> On Wed, Mar 11, 2015 at 2:45 PM, David Schrag <david at schrag.net> wrote:
>> We've done reasonably well this winter and have been helped out by a
>> generous anonymous neighbor with a snowblower. (Note to snowblower owners:
>> it would be awesome if you could clear your entire block and not just your
>> own sidewalk.)
>>
>> That being said, the sidewalk on our block ends at our house and pedestrians
>> have to walk in the street for the remaining 25 yards or so until they get
>> to the corner, no matter the season. So sometimes I ask myself, what's the
>> point?
>>
>>> On Wed, Mar 11, 2015 at 2:12 PM, Ethan Gyles <egrande25 at yahoo.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> Judgments and opinions aside, clearing your sidewalk after a storm is *the
>>> law*. The city has never really enforced this law with fines, as it is
>>> authorized to do. The law is intended to protect pedestrians who are forced
>>> to walk in the narrowed street and put themselves at risk when the sidewalks
>>> aren't passable. Homeowners and businesses alike are culprits, as is the
>>> city itself in the cases of sidewalks that pass through public property.
>>> This problem has been particularly egregious on the main thoroughfares like
>>> North Main this winter, where pedestrians are common and traffic speeds are
>>> high. Thankfully no one (that I'm aware of) has been clipped by a passing
>>> car and hurt or killed this year.
>>>
>>> Ethan
>>> Hillside Ave.
>>>
>>>
>>> ________________________________
>>> From: Sheila Judkins <shejudkins at gmail.com>
>>> To: Aaron Smuts <asmuts at gmail.com>
>>> Cc: "summit at sna.providence.ri.us" <summit at sna.providence.ri.us>
>>> Sent: Wednesday, March 11, 2015 1:49 PM
>>> Subject: Re: [Summit] Icy sidewalks
>>>
>>> Hi! I'm just speaking for myself but it's been incredibly hard to keep our
>>> sidewalk clear.  My husband travels a lot and I have two kids under 5.  We
>>> hired someone to come do our driveway who would come at 11pm or not at all
>>> and rightly so as he would prioritize the houses of those in the medical
>>> field.  Or he would come and not do my sidewalk.
>>> When I was able to get outside and shovel and put salt down, I came back
>>> inside to my one year old eating the rock salt from the floor.
>>> I tried taking the kids outside while I shoveled but in the cold, the kids
>>> wouldn't stay out long enough for me to shovel it all.
>>> SO that being said, I know it's easy to get frustrated with neighbors but
>>> I would just ask that we not judge each other too harshly as I am finding
>>> that there is a lot of anger coming into this forum.  It's probably also not
>>> that motivating for anyone who is actually lazy to get an email like this
>>> and be motivated to shovel or ice.
>>>
>>> Perhaps the volunteer shovel committee could leave a note on houses asking
>>> if they needed help clearing the walkways?  That would at least remind
>>> people to do it and also offer help if they actually need it.
>>>
>>> plz xcuse typos
>>> Sheila - colonial road
>>>
>>> On Mar 11, 2015, at 1:32 PM, Aaron Smuts <asmuts at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> I agree. The weather has been nice for days but the sidewalks are
>>> still covered in ice. And most of the corners are blocked.  What's
>>> with this place?
>>>
>>> How hard is it to clear a sidewalk? Sure there are some legitimate
>>> excuses, but it just can't be that 75% of the people here are too
>>> frail to shovel snow once a week during the month of February. Is
>>> there some epidemic of extreme weakness upon us?
>>>
>>> There is no reason why we should be stuck inside for two months every
>>> winter. Is it simple laziness, rudeness, or both?
>>>
>>> It's not just the east side that's a problem. This is a city wide
>>> issue. From what I've seen, the west side of town is probably worse.
>>>
>>> Is this a regional thing? Or is it a RI thing, something like the way
>>> people refuse to stop at stop signs?
>>>
>>>
>>>> On Wed, Mar 11, 2015 at 1:10 PM, Andria Tieman <ladyandria at gmail.com>
>>>> wrote:
>>>> I am shocked that after so many days of melting, there are still many
>>>> sidewalks that are covered in slippery and dangerous ice. It never fails
>>>> to
>>>> blow my mind the lack of regard that people show for their neighbors.
>>>>
>>>> I know this winter has been particularly hard, and I commend SNA for
>>>> organizing shoveling volunteers, but it still seems like a number of
>>>> people
>>>> just don't care about anyone but themselves.
>>>>
>>>> /end soapbox
>>>>
>>>> ~Andria
>>>>
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>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
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>>>
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>>>
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>>
>>
>>
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>
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