2010 - An ongoing project. A modest effort to add a little interest to the streets of my hometown of Eureka. Below follows an explanation and primary idea for the southern entrance to the city along Highway 101 (South Broadway). But first, I just want to post this thought for improving the tourism potential of The Marina on Woodley Island:
The Fisherman's Memorial just needs to be a bit bigger.
Big enough to climb up inside for a view of the waterfront from little windows inside the head.
Eureka is my hometown. While it's true I wasn't born at General Hospital, that was only because
my father was in the military and I was born on an Army base in Kansas. The family, on my mother's side, goes way back. My relationship with Eureka goes back to my grandmother's apartment at 5th & B Street, Jefferson School,
Marshall School, Eureka Junior High, and then Eureka Senior High (Class of 1966).
I left Eureka for a long time...but then, I came back. It's kind of a "Love-Hate" relationship.
I particularly hate the contraction "EKA" but it works with the obvious parody of the "I Love New
York" campaign, so, I love it. That's what I mean.
What about that "spade"? Opposite of "heart"? I suppose, but it might also be a symbol of "fix-up"
... improving things a bit.
So, for the past several years, I have been thinking about how to "fix-up" Eureka, how to "spade"
Eureka. All of us ought to be thinking such thoughts about our hometowns or our chosen places of
residence. Cities and towns might benefit. Eureka might benefit.
The idea of an artist engaging in
city planning may have merit. After all, the former President of the
Czech Republic, Václav Havel, once said, "It all comes down to aesthetics".
I have some ideas for other buildings and public spaces in Eureka but I thought I would start this
project by concentrating on the entrance to Eureka (from the South), along Broadway, which is
actually
Highway 101, "The Redwood Highway". Here, some help is needed.
On this capture from a Google map, they refer to it as "Broadway St." Just one of those odd little naming aberations that occur with a computer generated map. We'll all be calling it "Avenue of the Giants" if this project takes off.
Years ago, that "Avenue of the Giants" idea came to me and the original vision was just a continuation of the famous path through the redwoods 40 miles south of Eureka. We'd just plant redwood trees on both sides of Broadway from the south city limits until somewhere around Wabash Avenue. The problem is that it would take so long for them to get big enough to do the trick. It would look OK in 30 years, nice in 50 years...but it would look great in 100 years. During that waiting time, the anti-tree people would complain about all those things they always complain about and it would be difficult to defend the proposal unless one was really committed to the vision for 100 years from now.
So the first phase of would be this Avenue of the Giants idea but... but with giant
"things"
rather
than redwood trees.
Eureka already has a "Big Hammer" at the Pierson's Buiding Center in this same
South Broadway neighborhood. Let's just continue the idea, use the pre-existing tourist attraction
of the Avenue of the Giants and turn our town into a Tourism Destination City! And that big hammer at Pierson's should get much bigger; big enough for a stairway inside and viewport up top!
Let's start down near the South City Limits and head North on 101 (Broadway):
(click on the image below for a larger photo)
South Broadway in Eureka, heading North. This is also US Highway 101 as it passes through town.
