Fountains of Franklin continues to underwhelm, remains characteristically disconnected from non-vehicular traffic

Though ostensibly home to one of the more welcome additions to Franklin commerce in many years (Sendik's), the Fountains of Franklin commercial development continues its slide into the valley of lowered expectations (a tumble which began with their unveiling of DQ Grill & Chill as one of their "high-end" tenants), with the announcement of CVS Pharmacy as an "anchor tenant."

Greg Kowalski's "Today's Concerns" blog notes that FoF developer Greg Devorkin also proposed commercial development for the SW corner of 51st & Rawson - - which is backed up to the impassable quarry, allowing only a single plane of access (from the 51st and Rawson side) unless hot air balloons are made available to residents of Franklin who might want to get to that particular corner without a car.

Unfortunately, the long-promised walking/biking path on 51st Street that would have made these proposed Rawson businesses accessible by foot or bike to the substantial population on and south of Drexel - - - and, by the way, vastly improved the survival rate for Franklin High School students who might want to walk or bike to the new commercial concerns on Rawson without being brushed by traffic - - never materialized.

Meanwhile, we pat ourselves on the back for various Oak Leaf Trail extensions which, while a boon to recreation runners and bikers like myself, require an actual parking lot for accessibility and lead nowhere.

(Franklin's not alone in dubious stewardship of the Trail. In theory, you can bike all the way to the lakeshore from Franklin or points west on the Oak Leaf Trail - great, right? However, the picture below shows the Oak Creek portion of the Oak Leaf Trail that that stands between you and Lake Michigan. Those little rubble-strewn areas delineated by the white lines on either side of the road are reserved for you and your bike. Enjoy.)

So, anyway, a CVS is coming to Franklin, and you'll be able to drive to it and park and shop and get back in your car and then drive to another place. Whoo-hoo.

The ongoing, self-perpetuating wonders of sprawl.

Comments

[Greg Kowalski]

Hey John,

For some reason I could actually hear your voice coming out in the entry - sarcasm and all.

Good work at blending a bit of common sense into these poorly planned bits.