Althouse: "When you buy a condo, you don’t think you’re going to have a bike rack right in front."

August 23, 2013

"When you buy a condo, you don’t think you’re going to have a bike rack right in front."

"Who would want that?"

21 comments:

Matt Sablan said...: Who would want that? Bicyclists?; 8/23/13, 9:49 AM
SteveR said...: Hey what a great idea!!!! (eyes roll); 8/23/13, 9:51 AM
Unknown said...: I love the Divvy bikes, but use them in the Loop and near L stations. And the other bike station mentioned in the article is in a parking lot. It isn't a good comparison.

That said, they are 3 blocks from Wrigley so they probably have a few strangers wandering around the neighborhood already.

Who's side - annoying lawyers/condo associations or Chicago's authoritarian and inflexible bureaucracy?; 8/23/13, 10:06 AM
richard mcenroe said...: Poor babies. Call the movie "The Search for NIMBY"...; 8/23/13, 10:11 AM
BarrySanders20 said...: NIMBY issues (or here, NIMFY) amuse me because they reveal so much about humans and how we try to carve out space within society to achieve our own narrow self interest. The Chigaco lawyer, a likely liberal supporting all kinds of intrusive laws affecting others more than himself, says: "Bikes good. But fer Christsakes, not HERE!"

That attitide is not necessarily bad. People acting in their own self interest is what drives progress and leads to a successful society. This guy might have to bear a disproportionate share of the common bike load, but not without a fight. Others happily observe that it's him, and not them, bearing that particular load.; 8/23/13, 10:16 AM
kjbe said...: #firstworldproblems; 8/23/13, 10:37 AM
Robert Cook said...: If they want privacy and absolute sovereignty over the space surrounding their domicile, they should leave the city and buy a home in the suburbs. If they want the convenience and excitement of living in the city, they must accept that other people live there, too, and public space is for use by the public.; 8/23/13, 10:46 AM
TosaGuy said...: Interesting article, although the writer used quotes from bike rack supporters who don't have it in front of their house.

The condo owner put out comments to the article and his biggest beef appears to be that the city did not notify him or consult with people on the street and that drunk Cubs fans leave trash after games.; 8/23/13, 11:28 AM
Edgehopper said...: I live in the suburbs, work in Chicago, and I like the Divvy bikes. If you don't want to deal with crowds of people, don't buy a condo in the city, buy a house in the suburbs. Duh.

A public bike rack on a public street in front of your house isn't a nuisance or a taking. Deal with it.; 8/23/13, 11:54 AM
Sigivald said...: The lawsuit contends that the bike rack, outside 3565 N. Pine Grove on a leafy residential block, will bring with it home devaluation, noise, litter and strangers who could pose a threat to children

See, I sort of understand the first three commplaints.

But "oh, no, strangers will hurt our kids"?

Bullshit.

People they know are far more dangerous to them than random bike-riding strangers.; 8/23/13, 11:55 AM
Sam L. said...: Not taking sides on this one. Still, public bike-rentals...; 8/23/13, 12:11 PM
Carol said...: The bike rack is ok but them are some ugly bikes.; 8/23/13, 12:14 PM
Peter said...: It's hard to believe that rental bicycles priced at $7. per half-hour are going to bring all that many strangers (with their noise, litter, etc.) into the neighborhood. How many are willing to pay $14.00/hour to rent a bicycle?

In any case, perhaps someone could explain the basis of the lawsuit? I understand some feel aggrieved, but I assume the bike racks are in public space, and that the City has approved them. What legal restrictions are there on what the City may choose to permit in space that it owns?; 8/23/13, 12:18 PM
mccullough said...: Move to the suburbs dude.; 8/23/13, 12:19 PM
Levi Starks said...: Cue Dionne Warwick...
Walk on by; 8/23/13, 12:52 PM
Edgehopper said...: Peter--the pricing given in the article is a bit deceptive. It's $7/day to use the bikes as many times as you want, as long as it's no more than 30 minutes at a time. That's the price aimed at tourists and occasional users. For commuters, it's about $75/year for as unlimited uses no longer than 30 minutes, with small surcharges if you check the bike out longer at one time. Not such a terrible deal.; 8/23/13, 1:50 PM
Bryan C said...: If the condo owners really see this as a threat that must be removed, I suggest they purchase a reciprocating saw and some ski masks.; 8/23/13, 2:10 PM
Anonymous said...: The Divvy bike system is another example of crony capitalism. The winning bid was 50% higher than the next highest bid which was from a company that already has great experience in Chicago bike rentals, great customer services and a record of delivering on-time. The winning company was politically connected, hired some of the folks responsible for reviewing the bids and is likely to not achieve it's revenue goals. The cost averages out to about $17,000 per bike. Just like the parking meter deal, this will end up costing the taxpayers a bundle.

While the bikes look nice now, as they are in racks right by the curb, they will be subjected to the worst a Chicago winter can bring - mounds of snow shove on them by snow plows and a constant spray of salt during the typical freeze-thaw cycle we experience.

You can only rent them for 30 minutes before you have to check them back in or high fees kick in.

But hey, Rahm got a couple of really nice photo-ops. That's all that matters.; 8/23/13, 2:23 PM
fivewheels said...: I have one of these racks in front of my building. It doesn't attract a crowd. In fact, my thought when it was installed was: No one's ever going to use these.

As it turns out, I do occasionally see people with the bikes, but not often. The sidewalk I live on is nice and wide, but the bikes still are a pretty big pile of in-the-way, and it will only be worse in the winter. But it doesn't bother me really.; 8/23/13, 2:36 PM
BarrySanders20 said...: These things were fun to use in Montreal, except I had to ride in French, which for me was hard.; 8/23/13, 3:59 PM
campy said...: except I had to ride in French,

Yeah, it's much easier to ride a mere 10 miles than 16 kilometers.; 8/23/13, 6:17 PM