George,

I do not support a second crossing on the downtown mall. First, it would be much less expensive and probably almost as effective to create proper signage in the downtown area so that visitors can find the mall more easily. Second, and more important, parents of small children (I am one) don't need a second crossing to give us worries when we go down to the mall to stroll and have fun with the family. There are precious few places outside of parks where we can be somewhat carefree with our kids, not worrying about vehicles. The mall is one of those places (excluding the area around Christian's). The pedestrian mall should remain a mall for pedestrians, a place for families. Vehicles rule most everywhere else in town; they need not encroach further on the mall.

Jeffrey Rossman (electronic mail, December 1, 2005)