Bicyclists and courtesy

I’m a daily walker and I don’t mind having to share the sidewalk with bicycles when they don’t have a designated bike lane on the street, but pedestrians have the right of way as far as I know. So please just give me fair warning when you are coming up behind a pedestrian! It can scare the crap out of the pedestrian and most dogs are very uncomfortable with bicycles and especially skateboards.

—Brent Butler via our website, sduptownnews.com

Opening studio doors

Re: “Artists open their studio doors to the public,” Vol. 8, Issue 20 or at bit.ly/2cOCyAa.

Thank you for talking with a few of the artists and reporting on the second annual Open Studios San Diego [Oct. 15-16]. The number of participating artists has grown to more than 30. From Jamul to Fallbrook and Downtown to North Park, they have been telling me how much they are looking forward to opening their studios. Cheers!

—Patric Stillman, owner of The Studio Door in North Park, via our website

No to UAMP

Re: “A median, landscaped or paved? University Avenue re-do plan is at a crossroads,” Vol. 8, Issue 20 or at bit.ly/2drHmOl.

The outdated, backwards University Avenue Mobility Plan (UAMP) would be a huge disaster for University Avenue and North Park — for much more significant reasons than discussed in this article. This is literally the worst “mobility” plan the city has come up with in decades. See northpark.us/uamp on why this is, and what can be done to fix it.

—David Gleason, via our website, sduptownnews.com

(Editor’s note: The UAMP was approved more than a year ago by the San Diego City Council, so it is basically a done deal.)

Be prepared for more of these arguments. For their bike plans, SANDAG is also requiring that third parties such as maintenance assessment districts or parking districts be in place and agree to pay for taking care of any landscaping before they’ll install it. (Exceptions are federally funded projects, like the few blocks of Rapid Transit lanes on Park Boulevard, that are lushly landscaped.)

Problem is, these schemes require a subgroup, such as the adjacent property owners or those paying for parking, being forced to fund something everyone gets to enjoy. And California courts have not looked kindly on funding mechanisms that do not have a 1-to-1, pay-to-benefit relationship.

By refusing to figure in all the costs of the projects they present to the public, local governments and agencies are cutting corners on the cheap that end up costing more in future litigation than would being honest from the start.

—Mat Wahlstrom, via our website.

Street fair posers

I love street fairs, mainly because I love all the handmade crafts. I am kind of a chatty person. I enjoy talking to artists who are selling their stuff.

There is a common thread between a huge portion of venders and unfortunately it is lying about their “custom handmade items.” At a few of the recent fairs I have attended, about six out of 10 venders have claimed that the stuff they sell is their original, unique, one-of-a-kind handmade item. Some went as far as to describe the process in detail how the create their “one-of-a-kind” pieces.

Several were copy cats in the same fair. They were selling the exact same thing as the booth around the corner. I bought a scarf from one vender who told me she knits in a certain way to achieve the ruffles. The items were not knitted; they were crocheted. Big difference — for those who don’t know — knitting is done on two needles, crochet is done on one hook.

Being a big crafter myself, Michael’s is one of my favorite stores. I found so many jewelry pendants and charms that come prefabricated that the venders were pawning off as their own. I bought a dozen metal-covered leaf pendants, for gifts. I paid quite a bit of money for them. As I walked through the aisles, I saw the leaf pendants, the exact same ones for sale for $5 a piece or less. Boy oh boy, am I a sucker or what.

Another vender carefully described the place she goes to personally mine the gems in her jewelry. LIE! I saw them at Michael’s. The last thing I found was really disappointing. This particular vender I found very interesting. Her stuff  was beautiful and unique, not to mention super expensive. She took her time explaining the high-tech process she uses to create her pieces. I didn’t buy anything because it was too expensive. I saw the same pendants at Michael’s priced from $3 to $8, depending on size.

I don’t get it. Do you? Please explain it to me if you do know.

—Tina S. from North Park via email

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