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* Walter Jacobson touches on something that’s been glossed over in the coverage of the Lake Shore Drive outrage: Class…
I know we don’t like inconvenience. Especially, Lake Shore Drivers don’t like it, and Gold Coasters and Lincoln Parkers are unaccustomed to inconvenience. But we were all told in advance to prepare for the blizzard. […]
The storm ended yesterday, and already today 900 cars on the drive are unstuck; the expressways to the suburbs are clean, the trains and buses are running; the plows are clearing the streets.
Not bad after 2 feet of snow and 50 mph winds. Not bad at all.
Hard to argue with that.
* WTTW’s Elizabeth Brackett posted a video which included footage of cars stranded on South Shore Drive…
Media coverage of the public outrage was almost purely focused on drivers stranded on the north end of the Drive.
* And the death toll for the metro region was pretty darned low…
Officials in Cook, DuPage and Lake counties were investigating several possible weather-related fatalities — mostly from shoveling — bringing to at least 11 the number of deaths tied to this week’s blizzard and cold weather.
DuPage County Coroner Pete Siekmann said his deputies assisted in four death investigations that are believed to be linked to shoveling the approximately 20-inch snowfall.
Officials in Mount Prospect are awaiting autopsy results for a man who died late Wednesday after shoveling snow from neighbors’ driveways. Police said John Soboda, of the 600 block of East Prospect Avenue, was found dead in his car. Soboda had spent Wednesday pushing neighbors’ cars and helping them clear snow, his wife, Pamela, told police.
In Lake County, the death of a Mundelein woman is being investigated as a possible exposure death. Susan Smith, 57, of the 18000 block of Meadow Lane Road, was found Wednesday in her car in a Lake Zurich church parking lot about 24 hours after she went missing, according to Lake County Coroner Richard Keller.
* Sometimes, you can’t trust your own eyeballs. ABC7’s I-Team found that out the hard way when they drove by the homes of several aldermen and discovered their streets had been cleaned. After the report aired, some irate aldermen called up to complain. An addendum was posted online…
Alderman James Balcer said he gets no special treatment, that neighbors worked on his street, and his alley was plowed by a resident who has nearby rental properties.
Alderman Dick Mell says neighbors on his street have always pitched in together to dig out with no preference from the city.
Alderman Leslie Hairston says she got no special treatment and was busy Thursday helping constituents on her own.
Alderman Margaret Laurino lives in Sauganash and says a community association pays for its own snow removal.
Oops.
* Roundup…
* Parking Meter Firm Digging Out Pay Boxes
* Tired of waiting on city, neighbors work to clear Bucktown street
* Roof of historic church collapses after storm: It was one of the few structures to survive the Chicago fire, temporarily housing government workers during reconstruction of their offices in 1871.
* Drivers Search for Cars Stranded on LSD
* CS-T Editorial: No need to lop off heads over mistakes on Lake Shore Drive
* Gov. Quinn Says Guard Mission Complete
* Weather Service: Spring flooding likely in Midwest
* Costs are piling up around the Chicago area: The early blizzard price tag for Joliet is estimated to be about $450,000 — almost eight times more than a typical snow event… As of noon Thursday, about 25 percent of [Naperville’s] 1,200 residential cul-de-sacs remained unplowed, officials said.
* Naperville: ‘It’s taking us significantly longer to finish the job’
* Where does all that trucked-away snow go?
* Snow piles another obstacle for drivers - County, local officials working to move mounds in wake of blizzard
* Storm reminds city dwellers of alleys‘ importance
* Government agencies spin wheels clearing roads
* Most schools plan to resume classes
* Metra, CTA expect to resume normal schedules
* Mail delivery makes slow return
* Snowstorm demonstrates it’s not business as usual
* VIDEO: Blizzard 2011: A Long Ride Home
posted by Rich Miller
Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 6:23 am
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Good point by Jacobson, though just because you got stuck driving north on Lake Shore, it doesn’t mean you have money. It just means you stubbornly ignored all the blizzard warnings (and coastal flood warnings for the drive), decided to drive, and then waited until the last minute to get on the road for home. Bad judgment knows no class.
That being said, I marvel at the fact that the L never shut down. Talking to friends in DC they cannot fathom such a thing (granted, they shut down if someone talks about snow for an extended period).
Comment by Montrose Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 7:45 am
Wait a minute, here. Let me get this straight. I need to sit down and stuff. You mean, Chuck Goudie got something wrong? C’mon.
Not to worry, though. I’m sure that Chuck will correct it right at the top of the next newscast.
Comment by Corduroy Bob Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 8:09 am
All and all, a remarkable job by the folks who did the heavy lifting in coping with this storm. A debt of gratitude is owed by all.
If you don’t agree, check out how Philly and New York have handled their bad weather. Heck, Big D shut down over some ice and cold weather.
A little Midwestern work ethic goes a long way.
Comment by wordslinger Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 9:14 am
Yeah. Rolling blackouts in Dallas because of the weather.
Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 9:16 am
Sorry, but I’m not buying the LSD story. It was at a standstill from about 2:30 on (I know — I can see it from my window) and it was not shut down to about 7:00.
Comment by Jasper Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 9:37 am
–It was at a standstill from about 2:30 on (I know — I can see it from my window) and it was not shut down to about 7:00. –
It was what it was. But it seems to me that if LSD was at a standstill for 4.5 hours, yet more cars were still getting on, there would have been a lot more cars piled up.
Comment by wordslinger Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 9:41 am
(Thankfully) I was not in the city on the day of the blizzard nor have I needed to be there since–so my info is all second-hand. But the many, many people I’ve talked to and emailed in the last several days who do live in Chicago are overall very satisfied with the city’s response (which is ongoing) to an historic snow storm. I think the planners, organizers and responders deserve major kudos and I wish the media, especially TV would stop trying to stir up trouble and playing the blame game.
Comment by Responsa Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 10:35 am
I left my office at 3pm on Tuesday at Chicago Ave near LaSalle, I did not for more a minute consider taking LSD. I took clark street for miles and got home, even with Wrigley Field blowing apart. Granted I drove a four wheel drive pick up truck that day to work whic is illegal on LSD.
LSD fell apart in 1967 too, so this was not a big surprise really, and I lived through that experience too. My side street on the north side was plowed by 1 pm on Wednesday and that was impressive.
However, my snow blower could not clear out my drive way until I worked many hours, but by the evening on Wednesday I was able to drive to a store. All in all the city department of streets and san did a good job.
People do get traped on roads during storms, things like that happen. But the city based on this experience should ban CTA’s articulated buses (often called accordion buses) from the Drive, they are way to big. It was one of these buses that went into a skid and caused this nightmare. I simply hate driving next to these 40 foot monsters, that are often speeding on the drive.
LSD bans all trucks now but not buses, Illinois bans many trucks from highways when there are high winds. Clearly since LSD is a numbered state highway the articulated buses should have been banned given the predicted wind speed. But no one was really thinking about that on Tuesday, the City and State just wanted to get people home. Now we can correct the stituation by banning these buses from LSD.
Comment by Rod Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 10:40 am
I’m sure Walter watched the coverage of the South Lake Shore Drive cars on his own channel. Dorothy Tucker described folks abandoning cars, lack of a plowed parking lot nearby to relocate cars. fewer cars than up north.
Comment by amalia Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 10:46 am
The I-Team is using the BGA playbook which calls for all of us cast guilt upon elected officials first, presume nefarious activity and then look at the facts later.
Comment by Siriusly Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 11:09 am
Shows you how out of touch Walter is that he thinks only Gold Coasters and Lincoln Parkers depend on LSD to get home.
Comment by Chicago Dem Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 11:23 am
- Shows you how out of touch Walter is that he thinks only Gold Coasters and Lincoln Parkers depend on LSD to get home. -
Another strawman. He’s not saying that, he’s saying they’re the ones whining about the problems.
Comment by Small Town Liberal Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 11:48 am
LSD was NOT at a complete standstill from 2:30pm onward. I caught a 145 express at Michigan and South Water about 4:00pm. My commute - to Addison - took about 90 minutes. When we were on LSD, we were only going about 15 miles per hour. But we did move. It probably took us 60 minutes to go from Oak Stree to Belmont, but we got there.
Comment by ChicagoGirl Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 12:05 pm
I am not sure I buy the class issue. I’m guessing that the more affluent folks got out of downtown early. It was more likely the people who couldn’t afford to lose two or three hours of work who were on the drive trying to get home.
Comment by soccermom Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 12:18 pm
It’s been my experience that affluent people just complain more about everything. It’s a double edged sword. On the one hand it makes then PITA that other people (particularly service people) despise, but on the other hand, it gets them better service.
Comment by cermak_rd Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 12:36 pm
The next time this happens they will close LSD out of caution and Lincoln Park will be gridlocked.
Perhaps it will help if the City announces a day ahead that it will likely happen and that side roads may be closed too, etc. so that people who really don’t need to go to the office will stay home…..where they should have been on Tuesday.
Comment by Redbright Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 12:44 pm
I never watch CBS 2 News but I caught Jacobson’s editorial while I was waiting for Howard Stern on Letterman — I was dismayed that he tossed in a knock against those that happen to live in the Gold Coast or Lincoln Park — how does he quantify that those living there complained more about the blizzard and the recovery than elsewhere? He was essentially using code for rich, white (and high proportion of Jewish) people — which I know plenty of people are not rich that live there — many are young 20 somethings. And before people point it out, I do realize Jacobson is Jewish (so am I).
Comment by Just Observing Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 2:05 pm
The LSD story made for some cool photos.
I wonder how well G
Comment by VanillaMan Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 4:04 pm
I’ll have to admit I never thought of the Jewish angle. Probably because despite being Jewish, I have nothing to do with the North shore and besides, my fa is the most fatalistic person I know. Why complain…what good would it do…they’ll get to it when they get to it…
Comment by cermak_rd Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 4:29 pm
–The LSD story made for some cool photos.–
Glad you were entertained. Maybe you should send the cops, firefighters, tow truck operators, bus drivers, etc., a Bundt cake.
Comment by wordslinger Friday, Feb 4, 11 @ 4:40 pm