I’m starting to think that the worst creation of all time is not Jimmy Fallon, but the Topix comment section on the Advocate’s website.

The Advocate has some articles today about the light rail study and Harbor Point and the latest in their 5000-part series on the Mill River Park plan. Most of the comments are just pleasant back-and-forth discussions of the pros and cons of each idea, however, each article’s comments also contain at least one blathering rant against all things progress and/or all things Malloy.

Stamford studies return of trolleys

This article is about the $141,000 study on the feasibility of building a light rail system in Stamford. It mentions the benefits as well as problems, and it presents the thoughts of supports and opponents within the city government. On to the comments section:

“You have to do something around here. Stamford is growing and there is no infrastructure to support it. 95 and the Merritt are already overtaxed and clearly cannot have capacity added to them. Any little thing that can get even a few cars of the road will help. Light rail could help, and expanding Metro-North and Shoreline East needs to be part of the equation.” Can’t really argue with this; 95 and the Merritt are clogged and can’t be expanded. Sounds like a reasonable person…then comes this wingnut:

“Stamford is a small to medium sized town/city and can not handle a trolley NOW THAT THE CITY REMOVED ALL RAILS a few years ago - trolley and freight train alike. Three years ago the mayor could not wait to remove the rails, and now HE WANTS THEM BACK AGAIN! Stamford has LOST its population with the outsourcing of jobs and closing down of companies that made Stamford great.” I had no idea the Mayor and city government forced Xerox out, closed Yale and Towne and made Pitney Bowes move its manufacturing out of the city.

“That $175M upgrading of the waster treatment plant is an example, It STILL SMELLS ON MAGEE AVENUE afterwards and WE were told the smells would no longer be there after the upgrading. In the case of Stamford and all the major upgrades wanted to bring in MONEY only, we are a small town and to do what is being voted on blindly would require eliminating the total areas around and in the downtown to re-design Stamford from the ground up.” What the hell does this have to do with anything? Sounds like just another Malloy-hater.

“IF we got the trolley, Who would clean the tracks and roads, WE have NO Public Works as it used to be - road clearing, maintaining sidewalks, repairing the roads and curbing; all that has been privatized to certain companies that do shoddie jobs to say the least - potholes return in three months, curbs disintergrat, etc. No to the trolley as the to put it in would constrick the regular vehicle traffic as the roads can not be widened and made safe for the users. Safety comes of Money!!!” Ignoring the horrendous grammar and spelling, this is just inane. The reason the city struggles with maintenance is that people demand more and more and more, yet they scream for blood if anyone even hints at a .00000000000001% tax increase. I don’t like seeing my taxes go up, but you can’t have it both ways, people.

A future that could mirror the past

Just a nice article about people’s memories of the trolley as it was back in the day (you know, before the Landmark plaza took a literal and figurative crap on Main Street). The only notable comment is this one:

“When I was growing up, Stamford was a great place to live. The trolly was gone , but the tracks were still in place,on West Main Street anyway.Things were in a slower mode. People walked alot and stopped to talk to one another. You hardly see that any more.In my opinion, Stamford was better then than it is now.” Another person who longs for “the good old days.” I guess they conveniently forgot about that little period called the 1980s where downtown was desolate except for the crackheads and hookers.

Harbor Point takes shape

Another article about Harbor Point. No real news, no interesting comments.

Mill River restoration stays afloat

Must be a slow news cycle, because it’s time for your daily dose of Mill River Park news! Nothing new here, but the same ranter from the light rail article, Wally from Stamford, goes off again about how HORRIBLE this whole thing is. The odd thing is, the side bar to his comments says he’s in Redding. His comments:

“I grew up near Woodside Park, now Scalzi, and know what happened in 1995 through the mid-60’s with this river.” Yes…? What happened??

“The River itself has not been dredged since atleast the early 70’s and has been left to rot and turn into a junkyard in general.” THIS IS WHY THEY WANT TO DEMOLISH THE DAMN DAM. Do these people not get it? I think they don’t want to get it, because then they’d have nothing to scream about.

“It is about time Stamford realizes WE ARE NOT “NEW YORK CITY” with so much park land to play with; we are a small town that needs to retain its own image - which by the way has drawn all these New Yorkers into Stamford itself - for the next generation to enjoy.” ENOUGH with the “We are not a mini-New York” crap. Stamford is a city, and pretty much the only nice one in Connecticut. If you want to live in a small city, then move to Waterbury or Meriden. Enjoy the nightlife there.

“If the Zoning Board goes along with this project, then we Know Why the Trump Parc was allowed to be built where it is. IT is all about IMAGE, but who’s - the cities or the city governments???” Here’s a thought: Maybe Trump Parc is being built there because there’s no overwhelming reason why it shouldn’t be.

This is from a different person:
“The town growth is long out of control, which is one of the many reasons I have recently moved out of state.” Growth is out of control? So they should’ve stopped at Hoyt Street and left the rest of the city as farmland? What century is this??

“How quickly Trump got his building up, while other areas seemed more suitable, South End, etc.,” Yes, attack Trump again. That’s original. By the way, the South End IS being redeveloped.

“Notice driving down West Broad St from the hospital or down High Ridge Rd from Lord & Taylors’s, what does one see……….It’s a travesty.” What’s a travesty about West Broad Street? It’s kind of run down, but there are some new developments over there. And what’s wrong with High Ridge Road? Nobody loves strip malls, but would anyone live along a major four-lane road if it were residential??

“But unfortunately, the voices of the minority (Real Stamfordites go unheard.” No, they are heard…right here on the Topix pages. I need a drink.