Maybe the truck stop wasn't such a bad idea....
Today, as I was driving east on Harriet, I, along with my fellow motorists were held up for a moment as a utility worker flagged us to a stop; allowing his co-worker to back his truck into the lane closure they had set up.
It happened that I was momentarily paused across from the now closed Exemplar plant-- Just another small icon of Michigan's fast disappearing manufacturing industry. I probably pass by the plant daily; yet I hardly spare it a thought anymore-- Too painful. The lost jobs. The lost tax revenue. For those who like the painful prick of needles, you can recount the plant's closing here.
Still, sitting there for a moment, I dwelled upon Exemplar, and the not so long ago time of 1997 when it was built (on city land that was for sale for the longest time), nonetheless. I vaguely recalled that a local large petroleum concern (my fuzzy brain believes it was Gallop-Silkworth) was also interested in the site-- as a 24 hr. Truck stop. Using nifty hindsight, I now wonder if maybe that would have been the better choice.
I know, I know. Anyone with a touch of the NIMBY's or not, realizes that a truck stop is not the most desirous of properties to have-- pretty much a given that it's a hazardous waste site in the making, not to mention the less than peaceful 'lull' of diesel motors rumbling high and low. Yuck.
But... I dimly recall the city not even really considering the truck stop idea- and if I recall correctly (Gallop-Silkworth?) offered more for the land. Still, I didn't feel like sifting through page after page of Google stuff, so if anyone can confirm or deny my memory of the subject, please do.
Now I live but three blocks from the Exemplar site, and while the last thing I'd care to hear is diesel trucks 'Jake-braking' down the hill in the middle of the night, I like the sound of the last two coins in the city coffers rattling against each other even less. This city needs MONEY folks, and I'm at least ready to consider any and all future options that have a hint of promise, insofar as fiscal solvency is concerned.
To be fair, back in 1997, Exemplar probably seemed the best deal-- Jobs for locals, etc... Not too many people really foresaw just how rapidly manufacturing was going to go in decline around here. Small, lower paying non-union shops were supposed to be a safe bet in the Midwest, And seemed so at least, when viewed through a "90's" lens. Also, probably only a handful of 'analysts' really could predict just how much of a 800lb. gorilla China was going to become, even giving their knowledge of it's double-digit economic growth; just trying to figure all the international 'intermingling' of national capital and it's eventual effect on our locality is daunting, to say the least.
So to finish, I apologize if I leaned to much towards a 'rant' with unsubstantiated facts and figures, but I'm getting tired. It's late: For myself, and this city as well.
It happened that I was momentarily paused across from the now closed Exemplar plant-- Just another small icon of Michigan's fast disappearing manufacturing industry. I probably pass by the plant daily; yet I hardly spare it a thought anymore-- Too painful. The lost jobs. The lost tax revenue. For those who like the painful prick of needles, you can recount the plant's closing here.
Still, sitting there for a moment, I dwelled upon Exemplar, and the not so long ago time of 1997 when it was built (on city land that was for sale for the longest time), nonetheless. I vaguely recalled that a local large petroleum concern (my fuzzy brain believes it was Gallop-Silkworth) was also interested in the site-- as a 24 hr. Truck stop. Using nifty hindsight, I now wonder if maybe that would have been the better choice.
I know, I know. Anyone with a touch of the NIMBY's or not, realizes that a truck stop is not the most desirous of properties to have-- pretty much a given that it's a hazardous waste site in the making, not to mention the less than peaceful 'lull' of diesel motors rumbling high and low. Yuck.
But... I dimly recall the city not even really considering the truck stop idea- and if I recall correctly (Gallop-Silkworth?) offered more for the land. Still, I didn't feel like sifting through page after page of Google stuff, so if anyone can confirm or deny my memory of the subject, please do.
Now I live but three blocks from the Exemplar site, and while the last thing I'd care to hear is diesel trucks 'Jake-braking' down the hill in the middle of the night, I like the sound of the last two coins in the city coffers rattling against each other even less. This city needs MONEY folks, and I'm at least ready to consider any and all future options that have a hint of promise, insofar as fiscal solvency is concerned.
To be fair, back in 1997, Exemplar probably seemed the best deal-- Jobs for locals, etc... Not too many people really foresaw just how rapidly manufacturing was going to go in decline around here. Small, lower paying non-union shops were supposed to be a safe bet in the Midwest, And seemed so at least, when viewed through a "90's" lens. Also, probably only a handful of 'analysts' really could predict just how much of a 800lb. gorilla China was going to become, even giving their knowledge of it's double-digit economic growth; just trying to figure all the international 'intermingling' of national capital and it's eventual effect on our locality is daunting, to say the least.
So to finish, I apologize if I leaned to much towards a 'rant' with unsubstantiated facts and figures, but I'm getting tired. It's late: For myself, and this city as well.
posted by Rob at 10:04 PM
2 Comments:
I think a truck stop would have been wonderful there. If you stand on the I-94 overpass, you can't help but notice several thousand vehicles driving under it without stopping to deposit any money in ypsi's economy. This would have slightly adjusted that trend.
Also, I should note that it would have been a financial windfall for both amphetamine dealers and prostitutes in the area.
Hey, I must admit that truck stops do have an unsavory rep; and I did give some thought (I live there-- I know the score!) along your lines... Yet a strong, harassing-like prescence of the YPD, should be able to curtail many such problems...Until we don't have any officers left to patrol the joint due to the budget, anyway! ;)
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