Between the idea
and the reality
Between the motion
and the act
Falls the Shadow
I’ve been thinking a lot about T.S. Eliot’s “The Hollow Men” lately, thinking about its applications to pretty much every event in life. It’s sad and desperate, yes, but also (I think) a call to action.
Last night, during the Park Cities YMCA’s Planning and Zoning Commission hearing, I couldn’t get the above passage out of my head. On most projects like this, there are two sides: the applicant and everyone who hates the project. In this project, though, there are at least four distinct groups: the Park Cities YMCA, the neighbors west of Preston Road, the neighbors east of Preston Road, and the Rise School.
Each has their own agenda; some overlap, most do not. What’s good for the westside neighbors is bad for the eastside neighbors. No one likes the Rise School’s inclusion in the project except for the school and the Y, but it’s not because it’s a school.
This project has more shadows than any other zoning case I’ve covered here or in D.C., ones that might not ever be resolved.
That said, Planning and Zoning delayed voting on the project for another month, and may take July to hear the case as well. Thanks for putting up with this roundabout way of telling you to pick up Friday’s paper for more information.
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