THE TIGHTROPE by Evan Ravitz
Published in the Colorado Daily 4/15/92

Our fearless editor Clint Talbott noted Feb 13 that what’s good for the goose (former CU President E. Gordon Gee) isn’t always good for the gander (CU football coach Bill McCartney). And certainly slick salesman Gee got away with using his office for political campaigns in ’88 & ’90 while foot-in-the-mouth fundamentalist McCartney has been (rightly) condemned for the same recently.

What’s good for the Gees, and the elite who run our universities and world from their ivory towers? One didn’t hear much about Elizabeth Gee until she died recently of a long bout with cancer.

Remember Trygve Bauge? He’s the 12-year resident of Boulder from Norway known as the founder of the Boulder Polar Bear Club. He stopped by the Gees’ mansion-on-the-range to suggest a way for Mrs. Gee to beat the Reaper- Gersen detoxification therapy. (Incidentally this therapy is illegal here thanks to the US cancer industry, although, with studies showing much cancer is caused by environmental factors, cleaning up your internal environment sounds like something to try before chemotherapy.)

Finding nobody at the guard house he went to the door and knocked, then the window. She called the police and they hauled the elfin long-haired good samaritan off to jail. His lawsuit is pending. Might Mrs. Gee be alive today if she’d greeted Mr. Bauge in the spirit he approached her? Trygve at least could have cheered her up.

How about E. Gordon? What good could the West do for this bow-tied Eastern dandy who gave secret deferred pay bonuses to an array of VPs and a ‘lifetime’ contract to Big Mac? (A ‘lifetime’ for fundamentalists like Ronald Reagan and Mac means until Armageddon, soon, like the year 2000.) Let’s journey to San Luis, the oldest town in Colorado, sometimes the coldest town in Colorado, The Northernmost outpost of the former empire of New Spain.

Gee and entourage came to San Luis twice to showcase what CU could do for this little ‘third world’ burg- study the local historic and religious vernacular architecture, create a town plan and promote tourism, not to mention public relations for CU.

My old friends Arnie and Maria Valdez discovered that although they were CU Architecture and Planning grad students, bilingual San Luis eighth-generation natives, and had a national reputation for expertise in building and restoring local architecture (and keeping poor people warm), CU was applying to NEA for a grant to study “culture and religious architectural form in the San Luis Valley” without including them and benefitting another student without roots or experience there, or 4 hungry kids to feed.

There were other problems with the application, which promised to “enable local people to understand their culture and take pride in it.” Locals like the Monsignor were not involved, perhaps too stupid to understand their culture without outside assistance. The proposal to print 50,000 brochures to encourage tourism to fragile historic buildings or private ‘Moradas’ (Penitente churches) was not popular either.

They filed a discrimination suit with the Colorado Department of Education, but were convinced by a professor to also apply for a similar grant, which they did without help, but with the endorsement of CU. They won the grant, while CU’s own proposal was turned down. In retaliation, the department refused to give them matching funds they had promised in writing. “No way in hell you’ll ever get those Kellogg funds!” Bob Horn, the department’s service director, told them.

When Gee came on his cheerleading mission, Maria’s dad, Charles Mondragon sat next to one of Gee’s handlers and told her he could embarrass Gee by asking why the University stiffed the natives, but would prefer a private audience at his office. Gee came to the office.

Maria tried to be christian about it and not accuse people of discrimination. At some point San Luis experienced one of their common power brown-outs and the lights dimmed and buzzed. Gee became paranoid exclaiming: “What’s happening here, what’s going on?”, suddenly fearful in this town of brown people.

On another project, Maria did a historical overview for a Town Plan of San Luis and submitted family photos with a hand-written note asking that they not be published. Lo, they were published- Maria’s work with Bob Horn’s name!

Corruption is rampant in the School of Planning and Architecture- see the endless story in Westword 6/7-13/89. Arnie & Maria often saw cases of liquor being sent up to the head honchos.

The upshot is that Arnie & Maria left CU penniless (having counted on CU’s promised matching funds) and are finishing up at UNM, along with many others. Their Valdez Associates recently beat out CU for a Colorado Historical Society grant. Maria, as outspoken as Arnie is quietly competent, says: “CU manipulates public policy under the guise of education, and has divided our community with its money.”

What’s good for the Gees, the Goose and the Gander? A priority on education, not public relations- clearly an expensive failure at CU. Educators listen as well as teach, PR only blusters and marginalizes those who dare to dialogue. Maybe what the Gees needed was Mr. Bauge’s and the Valdez’s feedback to get them back on track. Big Mac’s getting some serious feedback. America’s ruling elites are out of touch. All natural and man-made systems need feedback to be healthy. That’s why we started the Voting by Phone foundation- to make it possible for Americans to have a regular voice in their government.

THE TIGHTROPE by Evan Ravitz
Published by the Colorado Daily 3/5/92

What is the future of Boulder? As the area with the eighth-highest per capital car registration in the nation (American Demographics Magazine, 12/3/84), are we driving our once “laid-back” city into the hole that is suffocating Los Angeles? We who regularly climb the foothills above town know that “Denver’s” famous Brown Cloud actually extends as far as the eye can see- from Golden to Fort Collins- about half the dirty days of winter. Does Boulder deserve its reputation as E-Town, or is it really C-town, Car-town?

Boulder also has a reputation as a bicycling town- more world class cyclists live here than any other city in the world. There are about 100,000 bicycles for 85,000 people, yet only 10% of us use our bikes for transportation.

At the February 4th City Council study session on the proposed Downtown Plan, the stickiest issue was a North-South bike path to link the Broadway and Creek Paths to the Mall and North Boulder. The Indian Peaks Group of the Sierra Club, the CU Environmental Center Board and Bolder Bicycle Commuters’ preferred plan is to close 13th Street from Walnut to Spruce Street to motor vehicles, and build a pedestrian Mall there with a bike path down the center.

These groups consider the ’13th-14th Street couplet’ option favored by downtown businesses unacceptable- this is essentially the status quo, with a few signs and perhaps a reversal of traffic flow. It doesn’t work- about half the cyclists ride the ‘wrong’ way South on 13th or the sidewalk, rather than take the 14th St. Detour. At a City-sponsored Open House in September, more people favored the closure option than all others put together- 57%.

Councilman Greenlee posed the best question of the night: Are we just connecting up the bike path or are we trying to encourage alternate modes of travel? If the latter, he said, let’s see a package of incentives.

Here’s my list:

1. Close 13th St downtown, and create obstructions every several blocks further north to discourage through traffic while encouraging cycling and permitting resident auto access. Neighbors have been complaining of drivers using 13th as an alternate to Broadway and speeding. Eventually this pattern could extend the length of 13th, making a Bike Parkway from Chautauqua Park past Beach Park and connecting via the Broadway Bike Path to Central Park and North Boulder Rec Center.

2. Permit cyclists to treat a red light as a stop sign, and a stop sign as a yield sign. This would legalize the natural behavior of cyclists in avoiding the crush of traffic and pollution at intersections, as well as provide an incentive to cycle. Municipal Court Judge Richard Hanson supports this- he says any law that can’t get 85% voluntary compliance is wrong. It is noteworthy that Mr. Hanson bicycled regularly until the last few years- he says it’s too dangerous for him now.

3. Lower speed limits by 5 mph citywide- a further incentive to not drive. Why race to the next red light anyhow?

4. Change City financial priorities. An example is the Department of Public Works 1992 maintenance budget request for $450,000 for medians versus only $191,000 for bikeways and $142,000 for sidewalks. A median is largely a poor excuse to install an expensive sprinkler system to water Kentucky bluegrass, the pavement and pesky cyclists. $450,000 could free the on-street paths of gravel and ice and encourage winter cycling, as well as provide needed signs and fix dangerous areas.

5. Change City law to limit parking built for new construction instead of forcing builders to pave plenty of the paradise left here for parking lots. San Diego and Portland both set maximum parking versus our minimum requirements.

6. Get the University to discourage new students from bringing cars- CU has just spent 8.4 million dollars on 2 huge garages, while CSU in Fort Collins plans to phase out campus driving altogether.

7. Free the City Bicycle Program to really advocate for cyclists: Why must they remain neutral in the downtown struggle while the Planning Department and Downtown Management Commission advocate the ‘couplet’, even though closure much better implements Planning’s own 9 strategies for improving downtown?

Can Boulder avoid suffocation and gridlock? You bet- in a single year bus ridership went up 42% with the Eco-Pass and Student Pass programs. But this still represents only 3% of all transportation ‘trips’ here, while cyclists already comprise 10%. A Harris poll in 1990 showed 10 times more Americans would cycle if facilities were improved. Seattle, a huge rainy city, is doing it. Compact, dry, young and athletic Boulder should too!

We need to work together- cyclists, pedestrians, roller-bladers, wheel-chair users and skate-boarders must become allies and stop fighting over the crumbs while cars hoard the cake, space-wise.

Now is the time to write letters to newspapers and the City Council, which has a study session on Alternate Modes Feb 25 and one on the 13th St issue March 31. Please also attend upcoming hearings of the Downtown Management Commission, the Downtown Design Advisory Board, the Planning Board, and finally, City Council hearings in April. You can always talk to me at 444-3596.

THE TIGHTWIRE by Evan Ravitz
Published by the Colorado Daily 12/91

“Businesses blast 13th-Street closure”, the November 21st Daily lead article, says a lot about what’s wrong with Boulder. The 50 business representatives grab the headline, while the 150 citizens who voted overwhelmingly for the closure on September 16 at a City Open House get the subhead and no story at all till now. So what else is new: money = news. Of course the Camera’s Business Plus story completely ignored us.

Putting aside for now that bikes = money in Boulder and that bikes = ecology, health and fun, the story background is this:

13th Street was designated years ago in the Transportation Master Plan as the bike route connecting the Broadway bike path to North Boulder and paths that go north and east from 13th behind the North Boulder Rec Center. With the advent of the Creek Path, 13th could be the connector to the Mall for pedestrians as well! The City backed building the 13th Street Pedestrian Bikeway and held a contest to design it in 1985. The City failed to consult first with downtown businesses, and cyclists failed to back up the city. Bicycling has at least doubled since the start of mass production of mountain bikes in 1984, our paths and racks are full, and we are still waiting for the City to keep its promise and put our money where its mouth is, ecologically speaking.

Some comments on story specifics:

The claim of Vagabond Travel owner Jane Morrissey that closure would be “death to downtown Boulder” is ridiculous, considering what closing Pearl Street did for life in downtown Boulder. Unfortunately otherwise reasonable and intelligent people like Boulderado Hotel owner Frank Day echo this, telling me that closure would “destroy downtown”. Sounds like “The Bike Path that ate Boulder” or the “Evil Empire” to me.

Strangely enough, it was Frank who suggested to me the closure of just the 2 blocks from Spruce to Walnut, which is now backed almost unanimously by the Bolder Bicycle Commuters club and the 1000 cyclists who’ve signed our petition. Cyclists and the City previously backed closing the 5 blocks from Pine to Arapahoe, which should still eventually happen as business is revitalized again by a new Mall addition. We think asking to close it incrementally is being extremely reasonable. There are many people saying all of downtown or even Boulder should be closed to cars.

The merchants worship parking, which costs about $14-18,000 per space to build downtown, never to be completely recovered by parking fees, but subsidized by taxes. Since the City first proposed the 13th St. closure, 392 new spaces have been built at 11th and Spruce, and about 200 above the bus depot. Sacrificing 94 to a new Mall addition should be relatively painless. We hope all 94 will come by bike or on foot.

Morrissey shouldn’t worry that her customers won’t be able to lug away the luggage she sells: parking will still be there 1/2 block South of her store in the lot behind United Bank; the alley North of her is less than 1/2 block away. Research for the Pearl St. Mall showed people would walk several blocks if it were pleasant. They do.

Morrissey commented at the City Open House that “…people ought to think of the future. As they grow older, and biking becomes less of an enjoyment, then what are they going to do?!” Personally, I intend to cycle into my 80s, and then walk. Indeed we should think of the real future: gas prices rising to the world average- about $4 a gallon- and beyond, as oil fields become more remote. We’re already poisoning our air, warming our globe and paving the paradise that Boulder and America used to be.

Morrissey says “It’s the older people who have the real money, and are more likely to buy the goods and services available in downtown Boulder. They certainly don’t ride bikes – they are dressed in business attire and know the value of hard work.” That doesn’t sound like the Mall I’ve worked on for 13 years, but it does sound like ignoring our children’s future to cater to the lazy.

Jane should meet Municipal Judge Richard Hanson, who rode a bike, judicial robes and all, into his late 60s. He stopped because of the increasing traffic danger Boulder bicyclists know so well. One Bolder Bicycle Commuter said bicycling was better in New York City! Indeed about the same portion of vehicles are bikes in Boulder and Manhattan- 10%. In a town as compact, warm and dry, with people as young and fit, as Boulder, that’s pathetic. Considering all our environmental consciousness in Boulder, now known around the country as E-Town, it’s hypocritical. We should really be known as C-Town, Car-town, the home of the 8th-highest per-capita car ownership in the nation (American Demographics Magazine, 12/3/84).

I was mildly misquoted in the article. I said the “13th-14th couplet” option, not the failure to close 13th Street, was a slap in the face to the biking community. Here’s why: The “couplet” is the way cyclists (and motorists) now must go, legally- North on 13th, South on 14th- it’s really the 14th Street Detour. This “option” adds merely 4 signs to direct you, an additional connection to the Creek Path to the Southeast, and most importantly, enforcement.

Enforcement is the key, because cyclists largely spurn the 2-block Detour for illegally riding south on 13th or the sidewalk. These cyclists include the Chair of the Planning Board, the Boulder Bike Coordinator, and the City Planner supervising this process known as the Downtown Plan. If our leaders don’t like the Detour, why will anyone else?! Only to avoid the Police ticketing spree the downtown merchants look forward to bludgeoning pesky cyclists into submission with.

Bureaucrats: The Bike Coordinator and Planner I mention have now mended their ways and take the Detour- they know that you can make their lives miserable. Perhaps this is why Bike Coordinators turn over so fast in Boulder- they aren’t allowed to be advocates for cyclists- they have to toe the City “neutrality” line, and ride the Detour. Maybe that’s why Coordinator Sharon Harvey is confused enough to claim “The bike community strongly supports the contra-flow lane”, when Open House attendees voted 57% for closing 13th and only 14% for contra-flow.

A Harris poll last fall shows 2% of Americans cycle to work, and 20% would if facilities were improved. With 10% of Boulderites now cycling to work, a similar increase would have all of us cycling! Even if only 30% did, our traffic and pollution problems would largely disappear, and the streets would be safer for all of us. The fact that there are more bikes- 100,000 -than people- 83,000 -in Boulder further shows it’s possible.

An Alternate Modes publication shows that the average car trip is 5 miles here, easily done on a bike, and faster, as bikes usually win the Non-polluting Commuting Race during Bike Week.

Portland, Oregon, and San Diego both limit maximum parking allowed for new construction projects. Here in Car-town, City laws mandate plenty of parking. While the City of Aspen provides free bicycles to workers, residents and visitors, Car-town nixed the idea, leaving it to Doug Emerson of University Bicycles to pursue. While Colorado State University plans to phase out cars from campus, CU spends $8.4 million of our money on new garages, only provides needed bike racks when forced to and recently considered banning bikes. CU teaches what City government practices: Greenwashing. Ecopocrisy. E-pocrisy

City government is putting our money where its mouth is with the Eco Pass bus program, which has already increased bus use by 42% in a year. In perspective though, bus trips still represent 3% of all trips, while bicycle trips constitute 10%, also a growing figure. The only way the Eco Pass can be made “the cornerstone of Boulder’s plan to reduce single-occupancy automobile trips 15% by 2010” is by reducing pesky cyclists with the “enforcement” approach the business community anticipates. Otherwise, cycling will continue to move many more people than the bus. This is Boulder, not Texas, Mr. Alternate Modes Co-ordinator. Everything in town is close. Boulder loves to cycle.

13th Street is the most important missing link in the bicycle network- connecting the Broadway and Creek Paths to downtown and North Boulder. The City already spent $7000 in the mid-80s to design it, and millions on parking garages nearby for those who won’t ride. City bike facilities are bursting at the seams- give the people what they want!

Recently, when the County wouldn’t take down the gate blocking the Canyon path in response to the pleas of cyclists who were made to risk riding the highway, brave “vandals” destroyed the gate over and over, until the County had to give in. Government will learn: The customer is always right. If Boulder were a democracy, the 13th St. Pedestrian Bikeway would have been built 5 years ago.

Stop by the Boulderado Hotel for coffee and to tell owner Frank Day you like his plan to close 13th from Spruce to Walnut as a beginning. Leave a business card, or a note, saying so. Economics talks louder than ecology.

You are invited to join Bolder Bicycle Commuters on Monday January 2, 6:30 at Morgul Bismark Bicycles, 1221 Pennsylvania, for our monthly meeting. We’re working for you, our beautiful town and the Earth! See you there!

REVOLVING DOOR by Evan Ravitz
Published in the Colorado Daily 10/25/91

Brilliant editing on page 11 of the Oct 18-20 Colorado Daily. The juxtaposition of the ad for the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill featuring Lincoln: “Abraham Lincoln saved our Union while he endured mental illness” (he was depressive) with the article “Slavery Thrives”: “there are more slaves now than ever before” really makes one think:

Who wouldn’t be depressed being President while human bondage was destroying the country? And isn’t Honest Abe rolling in his grave now with slavery thriving 125 years later? Even if it’s economic more than legal slavery.

I feel anyone aware of US events is now depressed or in denial. The Thomas H-earings dramatize a country divided male against female, black against white, and especially, the rulers against the ruled.

As the stock market soars to record highs, banks and farms are failing faster than anytime since The Depression. This happened before- in 1929. As world population soars, the Bushmaster plots a “policy” of drilling, mining and cutting out the remaining resources of the country and using our position as the #1 military power on the planet to “control” (enslave?) the world

None of this can last. There is comic relief in seeing our new Justice as The Daily’s Dr. Rock portrayed him, Long Dong Silver “rocking back and forth, like someone on the back ward in the state mental hospital.” With folks like Orrin The Hatchet Man, Alan The Simpson and Arlen the Specter of Death co-starring, all versus Anita Hill, like a beautiful but damaged Mother Earth herself. What a show! Good symbolism!

World change is accelerating. Yet our government is either paralyzed or lurching toward Ollie North’s Rex 84 plan for suspending the Constitution, instituting martial law, and establishing concentration camps for dissenters. This plan was revealed during the Iran-Contra hearings, but hushed up by Senator Inouye for “National Security” reasons.

We need a government that can change with the times. We need a “government of the people, by the people and for the people” that Lincoln spoke of. Not of, by and for just the rich and powerful. We need citizen democracy, the means of which is at hand- regular voting on the issues- the tool for which is the telephone.

That’s why we started the Voting by Phone Foundation two years ago, right here in Boulder, first reported in the Daily.

We planned to have on the City ballot this November an initiative to legalize phone voting, but a lawyer helping us gratis didn’t come through.

There are other lawyers and elections. We have 70 volunteers ready to pass petitions, enough for a City initiative. If we had 700, we could instead do a State initiative, which would be better for several reasons.

Students in Colorado, please help us start a network of volunteers all over the state to do this. Our new brochure tells all. If you’re depressed it might make you manic! Not as funny as the Hearings. But real. Call 444-3596 for a free copy. Watch for it real soon on campus. With the picture of Lincoln on the cover.