And, just to make sure that young males would be skating back and forth across the street, there was what appeared to be pre-high school girls practicing cheerleading directly opposite the skatepark. After several days of navigating two young children through that mess, seeing how fast some drivers plow right on through, and witnessing a couple near-accidents, I called the City, the high school and the Arcata Police Department to register my concern. Granted, it was three blocks further down, in Dwain and Suzie's front yard. It's sad that it takes the tragedy of a crushed human being to illustrate a serious problem. But it will be even sadder if this community doesn't meet the problem head on.
Traffic calming is an imperative.
But it won't be truly effective until we face the enormity of the real problem. As in every other U.S. city, the needs of citizens and community are being held hostage to the needs of the automobile. The hunk of metal and plastic that was supposed to be America's ticket to freedom is increasingly imprisoning us at home. As an adult I can be almost blind to a world circumscribed by cars - but as a parent it's apparent. In Arcata proper, the time is long past when you could safely let your child run over to his buddy's house.