Occasionally I have time to get in the blessedly cool library and get online. Something in my FB feed startled me. It was a picture of a red bench with a story. A school in Ohio put a red bench in the playground. When a child is feeling lonely, they sit there. Then a child will come up and ask them to play. Those are just the accepted rules, and all the children do really well with it.
So how about we start this as adults? We could put a red bench in the pocket park across from the Main library, one in front of Police Central, where the Community Liaison Officers are headquartered, and in Community Centers around the city.
People could wear red bench buttons, signifying they are available to sit down and talk, or offer a cup of coffee, or just give a person the time of day.
Vendors could wear one, since we do that all day long anyway! We talk to other homeless people, friends we are making: patrons, businesses, workers, police officers, and really anyone passing by.
Here are some other ideas I have that I think will really help improve the quality of life for everyone, including the unhoused. Please consider them.
- Install five to 10 tiny house pocket parks that contain 10 or so tiny houses with bath house and a deciduous tree or two around the city in areas that need a little more community bonding, providing a facelift to the curb appeal, or just provide cheap housing without having to remove trees, create huge foundations, or spend a lot of money. The tiny homes or shared bath house could have incinerating toilets and a self sustaining gray water recycling system that either models after the TSU wet water filtration system, or implements another design that some brilliant engineer in our city comes up with!
- Install more greenways in northeast Nashville.
- Create a bus route to old Hickory State Beach. It could be a short bus that runs four times a day. It would really help provide respite for everyone in Northeast Nashville in these hot summer months.
- Require all building owners that have a flat roof building on a main artery leading into town to install a green roof, green walls, trees , or Solar or Wind power. Create a city bond that will help owners pay for this, if they are a sole proprietor/ building owner. Note: All existing leases must be honored!
- Install luxury coach rides into Nashville for commuters that are office workers or are willing to pay a bit more. Provide padded seats and stop less frequently. Airplane style fold out trays for Wi-Fi.
- Plant trees along all main arteries.
Please look up the ideas on the participatory budgeting page at nashville.gov. There are many ideas that involve installing sidewalks. I think in some instances where deep ditches exist on either side of the road, a boardwalk might be cheaper and more appropriate. However, everyone seems to be talking about live- ability. So let’s make it easier for people to stop driving, to start using public transportation, and hang out in spaces that are kind to humans, not cars.