Uniting Courthouse Square

The time has come to unite or divide Courthouse Square. This happens every 50 years, and we do it to help businesses. We divide Courthouse Square by putting the Old Redwood Highway through it, making it more accessible for customers. Or we reunite the square by removing the road, making stores even more or less accessible, probably.

The process of dividing or reuniting the square takes the Santa Rosa City Council about 20 years of deliberation, which gives the council members something business-friendly to negotiate. The cost this time will be 17 million dollars, which, divided by 50, works out to a mere $340,000 a year.  Of course dividing or reuniting will cost more in the future, but you have to adjust for inflation.

One note of caution--the reason people shop in smaller towns and in malls or anyplace else in the county rather than at Courthouse Square is that small towns and malls do not charge for parking. Recently the metering system down town was changed to make it more confusing, and that might help businesses a little. I can say that I intend to return to shopping down town as soon as parking there is free. In the meantime I prefer that the square be reunited or divided at regular, inexpensive 50 year intervals. The City Council has my support.