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Nothing Really Happens In Claremont…
By Tisza Major-Posner | May 1, 2007
I was reading our local community paper the Claremont Courier recently and was struck by how little content there actually was there. Sure, there were the usual community announcements, updates on the latest topic being bandied about in the City Council meetings and a human interest story, but there was not much else there. I closed the paper, lamented how little it contained and realized that nothing really happens in Claremont.
They can’t talk about Claremont’s crime problem because with a population of approximately 37,000 residents, we had 983 total crimes according to the FBI statistics last year. That’s not news. Now, please don’t missunderstand, that is a significant number to every victim, but that does not a crime wave make.
They can’t talk about Claremont’s poor school system because our schools are some of the best in the state. Most are rated as California Distinguished Schools. And our bastions of higher learning like Pitzer, Scripps, Pomona, Harvey Mudd, and Claremont McKenna, to name just a few are world renowned.
They can’t lament the lack of social conscience that Claremont’s residents exhibit. Green architecture abounds everywhere from private homes to public buildings. People actually walk in their neighborhoods in the evenings. And for every Hummer that I see, I find 10 Prius’.
They can’t say that Claremont doesn’t support the arts. With the brand new art museum in the recently refurbished Packing House downtown, the Inland Pacific Ballet that performs at Bridges Auditorium, The Candlelight Pavillion, and the Folk Music Center in the Village that hosts open mike nights for poets and musicians alike, that won’t hold water. Oh, and I almost forgot the First Friday Art Walks that are held downtown in the village on the first Friday evening of every month from 5 - 9 pm.
They can’t focus on the urban blight sweeping through the city. Claremont’s streets are clean, and gang free. The only thing sweeping this city is the brooms held by its residents. Claremonts buildings are graffiti free and its residents take pride in their homes and their neighborhoods.
They can’t say that the community doesn’t care for its older population living on fixed incomes. Two senior nutrition sites at the local parks, Joslyn Senior Center, and Blaisdell Park, offer lunch for seniors and their spouses age 60 or over, M-F at noon for a suggested donation of $2. And they even offer free transportation to and from the sites, this is not content fodder.
No, nothing really happens in Claremont and maybe that explains why so many people want to live here.
Take care, help lots of people and have a wonderful day!
Tisza
Topics: Claremont Happenings |
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May 2nd, 2007 at 8:10 pm
Tisza - this make me laugh so hard! My husband is from a little town in Venezuela called Cumana and they used to say the same exact thing.
May 3rd, 2007 at 2:47 am
Brilliant way to deal with subject. btw, I’ve heard people from NYC and LA complain about nothing to do. It’s all in your perspective.
May 9th, 2007 at 9:17 pm
Well, gee, there are a few things that happen in Claremont:
* You can get a $20 ticket for parking in front of your house overnight.
* You can get a $150 ticket for failing to water your lawn sufficiently in the middle of the driest year on record in LA County.
(Neither of these happened to me, but they seem to suggest a certainly lack o’ somthing better for *someone* to do…)
May 10th, 2007 at 2:17 am
Hi All,
Ines - Isn’t it amazing how “nothing” can be really something! Thanks for popping by!
Teri - Thanks for the kudos. I had fun with this.
Kevin - Welcome to Route66Living.com, It is nice to have you here! I admit, my city is not perfect, but having lived a large variety of others, I can say with assurance that it truly is better than most.
When I lived in the Fairfax district of L.A. I received a lifetime’s worth of tickets for parking in front of my house, despite the fact that I had no alternative.
And if you contact the Claremont Police Department, give them the license plate number of your vehicle, or that of your guest’s, and let them know how long it will need to be parked on the street, you will not receive a ticket.
Since most of the residents in our community have ample off-street parking available to them, most residents of Claremont do not need, or choose to park their vehicles on the street.
Also, we are currently observing water conservation measures here in my fair city which means that we are all doing our best to be very mindful of our water usage.
However, allowing grass and trees to die is not only unattractive, it is also very unwise. It increases fire danger and that puts everyone at risk.
Thank you all for your comments. I appreciate them all!
Tisza
May 13th, 2007 at 12:00 pm
I have no trouble with civic pride — “I love my town!” or even “This place is perfect for *me*!” — but it is important that it doesn’t become civic hubris — “My town is better than most.”
Hey, Claremont’s a fine town. In the three years I’ve lived in the Village, I’ve enjoyed the easy walk-ability of the town. I’ve eaten at nearly every restaurant in the Village. I’ve enjoyed the toy store and chocolatier and drunk plenty of beers at the Press. But that doesn’t mean I’m gonna give the place a free pass.
The parking issue is significant, not because of the level of annoyance (which is slight), but because of what it signifies. Does it really seem reasonable that I notify the police every time I have a visitor!? Or that I should never accidentally leave my car in front of my house?
I’m not sure why this regulation initially arose — maybe it was an attempt to prevent student vehicles from overwhelming the town. In that case, I suspect that resident stickers for the neighborhoods immediately adjacent to the colleges would be a better solution.
This shotgun approach to parking enforcement will ensure that large families and groups of roommates stay out of Claremont. If that’s what the town wants, I suppose that’s okay, but it hardly fits the progressive image that Claremont initially presents. This kind of policy is just going to continue to feed the distressing lack of diversity in Claremont.
[Full disclosure — yes, I have plenty of off-street parking. I don’t have a large family or roommates. I just enjoy living in diverse cities with lots to do. And I think that social consciousness requires more than driving a Prius (I do), walking in the neighborhood (I do), or building green (an interest of mine).]
May 14th, 2007 at 1:27 am
Hi Kevin,
Welcome back! I am glad to hear from a Claremont resident, a fellow Prius owner, and a neighbor at that!
I agree that it is not a good idea to give any city a “free pass”, but I truly don’t believe that I have done anything of the sort. To say that this community is better than most is, in my opinion an accurate statement.
Since neither of us were part of this city when this ordinance was enacted, neither of us is qualified to determine what caused it’s creation.
As I mentioned before, I have lived in communities where as a neighborhood resident you had to pay $40 for a parking permit quarterly, and still risked being ticketed depending upon the whim of the parking enforcement officer.
I have lived in communities where the parking was limited to two hours maximum and was enforced 24 hours a day. They actually expected you to go outside every two hours and move your car to the opposite side of the street or you got a hefty parking ticket.
I have lived in communities where you not only had to get a parking permit (limited to a maximum of two issued per household regardless of the number of residents) where you also had to go personally, not call, go, to the police department before 7pm to get a parking pass for a guest (also limited to two per household) after a fee was paid.
In each of the above instances, the neighborhoods were all nothing but apartments with no off-street parking available and most apartments were roommates situations with two or three cars per unit.
I hasten to point out that each of these communities was the prototypical essence of what most people would describe as diverse.
However, diversity, progressive thinking and social conscience have to do with attitude not economics. And Claremont is indeed a very diverse, progressive and socially conscious community.
Claremont is not perfect, and I am not trying to present it as such. No place is perfect.
But I reiterate, as a six year resident of the city, who has lived in lots of other places in Southern California including Lomita, Inglewood, Long Beach, Santa Ana, Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, Fullerton, Fountain Valley, Orange, Anaheim, Garden Grove, Los Angeles, Fairfax, West Hollywood and Hollywood, Claremont has a whole lot more right with it than wrong.
I would also encourage you, if you are not already, to become a member of Active Claremont. This organization would be a great place for someone like you who seems to be very interested in your community and in how to improve it.
Please consider coming to a meeting at the Claremont Library on the third Thursday of every month at 7 pm.
Thank you again for reading my blog, sharing your views, and as a resident not just of Claremont but of this planet, your dedication to bettering the world we live in.
Please continue reading, writing and sharing. You are also welcome to contribute either topics you wish to see me cover, or articles you wish to share.
Take care, help lots of people and have a wonderful day!
Tisza
May 17th, 2007 at 2:25 am
congrats on the launch! I definitely look forward to playing on the site!
http://www.Johnbeckssuccessstories.com/
May 17th, 2007 at 11:37 am
Hi Richard,
Welcome! I am glad you found Route66Living and that you like what you see. Please feel free to stop by anytime and invite your friends. Oh, and if you have any ideas that you would like to share or you would like to see covered, please get in touch and let me know.
Thanks for visiting.
Take care, help lots of people and have a wonderful day!
Tisza