Quote:
Originally Posted by Cirrus
OK, I haven't been to the mall in years. I fully admit I may not grasp the scale of the problem.
But teenagers need places to hang out. At least on the mall they're sort of supervised. If we kick them off the mall they're not going to suddenly start dressing nicely and trying out for team sports. They'll take their nastiness underground, and it'll be worse for them and worse for the people they harass.
Bunt is always talking about how terrible it is that the city is turning into nothing but a playground for the rich, with the somehow undesirable parts callously swept aside. How would kicking the mall rats out not further that problem? Or do only priced-out potential homeowners matter?
I'm not saying kids should be completely free to harass people and turn the city's most-visited public space into a hellhole. Of course not. But I doubt the answer is to kick them out.
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Yeah, I was a dirty high school kid once, who needed places to hang out. And I did it in public places where I wasn't always necessarily welcome. But I seriously doubt anybody felt they needed to carry a concealed weapon to be safe walking past me.
Crime in public spaces is not even remotely the same issue as unaffordability in the city. Frankly, I don't care if we have good public spaces, if your thinking is to provide a suitable play space for the folks who have to commute in 20 miles from more affordable climes to enjoy a big city experience. At that point, the better solution is to say f*** regionalism and have the suburbs start competing to create their own better play spaces. Denver doesn't need to accommodate me in my free time (and take my tax revenue) if Denver does see fit to make it possible for me to be able to live in its boundaries - whether that's as a renter or a homeowner.
I will actually be voting against SCFD the next time it comes up for a vote. Rich Denver no longer needs the subsidy. And I think it's time other jurisdictions start competing for facilities. Denver is the enemy of the region now, not the victim it once was.