Linda Dillon and I Have an Idea.

Actually, we independently came upon two complementary versions of the same idea.

Linda and I agreed that a big problem with Biscayne Park is how run down parts of it look.  I was thinking of the medians, about which she agrees, and she was thinking about personal properties, about which I agree.  Here are our ideas.  And they both depend on the Parks and Parkways Board.

Linda wants to encourage people to improve the outward appearances of their houses, perhaps especially landscape.  Her idea was to have P&P run a kind of contest, or recognition.  Maybe once a year, P&P would survey the neighborhood, and give prizes, or certificates, or maybe the Village would even grant nominal tax credits, for people who do good things with upkeep.   Linda's fantasy, to which I agree, is that this would raise consciousness, and maybe excite a little friendly and neighborly competition, which would have the overall effect of getting people, maybe most of us, maybe almost all of us, to pay more attention, and make these kinds of improvements that are a credit to the whole Village.  And, by the way, raise the sense of value, or even values.

I want the medians improved.  The new trees from a few years ago are nice, though they're young and need lots of time to grow, but the medians overall look very thin and skanky, haphazard, unkempt, and not a real credit to us at all.  The best that could be said is that the medians are there, and they represent a possibility.  So what I want P&P to do is create a plan for all the medians in the Village.  I'm guessing the plan would be uniform, or at least unified, but maybe it wouldn't.  What I'm looking for is the plan.  P&P and the Village don't have to do a thing or spend a cent.  Just make and publicize a plan.  Then, people whose houses are on medians could buy plants themselves, according to what the plan contemplates.  Either residents can install the plantings, or Public Works can.  Like Linda, I see a competition available here.  Whoever has the nicest median at the end of every year gets...

I was talking to Kelly Mallette and Juan Fonseca about this, and Kelly suggested the simplest, easiest thing in the world.  Just end caps at the ends of each median.  Just those little boundaries that are like sidewalk curbs.  It's like the simple frame on a picture.  It adds nothing to the art, and it does no more than create a discrete boundary.  But it has great value for that kind of visual punctuation.  And if the boundary was not raised, but was brick or keystone or something else, perhaps so much the better.

I envision P&P designing something with xeriscape, or some other low maintenance material, in mind.  If we need irrigation, that's part of the project, too.

The concepts are the same, and the results are the same.  We improve the appearance of our neighborhood, and that improvement raises property values.  It costs the Village (us, as tax payers) little or nothing, and increases community engagement.  If there's a downside I overlooked, please add your insights as a comment.