I submitted the following letter to the editor of my local paper in response to an article about the mayor’s proposal to close our historic main street to vehicular traffic on some weekends next summer. The street is always packed with pedestrians. I think it’s a great idea, and should happen every weekend. They published the letter in today’s edition of the paper.

I fully support Mayor O’Keefe’s proposal for closing Washington Avenue for select weekends in summer. For many years, such a proposal has been a topic of discussion among my friends. I grew up in Grafton and have been a resident of Cedarburg for over a decade now. Driving down main street on a weekend is a joke. Every local knows this, and every local knows the quicker alternatives: Hanover, Evergreen, or Mequon Avenue.

The objections raised in the recent News Graphic article can be resolved, although maybe not in 300 words. I would emphasize two points to any critics of the proposal: we have shown the ability to do it when we close down the street for Strawberry and Harvest Festivals, and Cedarburg would not be unique in this state, country, or world in closing down a main street like this. If other communities can do it, we can do it too. Those communities faced the same issues raised by critics in the article. We can learn from how those communities solved their problems and see if those answers make sense for Cedarburg. I’m confident we can figure it out.

I have long envisioned a Washington Avenue that better promotes and accentuates the beautiful and historic downtown. Imagine a main street where restaurants and bars could extend their patios into the road, leaving sidewalks open for pedestrians to walk freely without having to navigate around café tables. Imagine not worrying about inattentive drivers oblivious to you as you exercise your right of way in a crosswalk. If you’ve traveled to cities with pedestrian main streets, have you ever thought, “you know what this street could use? Cars!”? I doubt it. If anything, you probably felt joy and peace at being able to leisurely stroll the pedestrian mall.