Commentary & Opinion

My Father’s Valentines

by EditorFebruary 2003

by Jeff Johnson

I admit that for years I was embarrassed by the poems… weak, poorly written, overly sentimental.

One year ago we published the first issue of the Riverwest Currents. It had 12 pages, some black and white photos, and a group of folks dedicated to the vision of a paper focused on our community. Our cover story was on the Reservoir on North Avenue. I have lost count of how many people were surprised by the fact that the hill they were so familiar with for so many years was filled with water. Likewise, it is gratifying that so many are so interested in the characters that fill our homes and businesses. Their inner stories comprise a vital ingredient of our mission. Our niche is in and around our neighborhoods. Our audience is the 12-year-old and the 20-, 30-, 40-, 50-, 60-, 70-, 80-, and up-year-old black, white, and brown people who live, work, and play here. We are not “glam” and we are not “square” either. There is a place for you here in our neighborhood and in our paper.

Editorials

This is the Place

by EditorJanuary 2003December 2013

A new year is a good time to take stock of what’s good and what’s bad in your life. For many people, one thing that’s good is this place we’re all in together. It’s where we live. It’s our neighborhood. So we’re devoting some space this issue to reflecting on the past year — in photos and writings — and on this place we live in together. Just what is it that makes a place a neighborhood? You may think it’s something as simple as location and boundaries, but even that can be complicated, as Dan asks in “Where is Riverwest?” Boundaries are fluid and changing; we decide what they are. You may think it’s the people that make a neighborhood, and that is mostly right. People have everything to do with a neighborhood’s character, which is why Riverwest has so much character. We live in one of the few diverse neighborhoods in one of the most segregated cities in the nation. But we still have a ways to go, as Tanya talks about in this month’s View from Here.

Commentary & Opinion

Where is Riverwest?

by Dan KnaussJanuary 2003November 2022

What are the borders of your neighborhood? Unless you’re a newcomer, when you think about this question, definite answers probably come to mind right away. Where did you get those answers? How certain are you that they are right? Do they describe something that’s really out there or something that for some reason or another you need or want to believe in?

Commentary & Opinion

Help Keep the CDC Office Open in 2003!

by EditorJanuary 2003

The [Riverwest] CDC is funded by CDBG (Community Development Block Grant) funds from the city which were drastically cut by for 2003. Therefore, the Y has had to reduce staff and cut back on overhead. The YMCA CDC planned to close the Center St. office and move the staff person over to the YMCA Holton Youth Center. RNA members, both Aldermen and both Supervisors disagreed with that plan and prefer to have the Center St. office remain open to provide a more prominent and visible location. The YMCA CDC has agreed to a one-month extension – the Center St. office will stay open until January 31. THIS GIVES US TIME TO ACT. We need your help. We would like to raise $5,000 towards office overhead costs.