Regarding the May 21 commentary by Pat Somers Cronin on cul-de-sacs in the North Beverly community titled “The road (or cul-de-sac) to disaster” (Op-Ed):
In addition to containing numerous factual inaccuracies, Mrs. Cronin’s piece was an unrestrained, uncivil and shameful personal attack on 19th Ward Ald. Virginia Rugai and an equally vicious attack on Mrs. Cronin’s African-American neighbors. As a resident of the North Beverly community since 1960, I feel compelled to support my neighbors and my neighborhood.
In her attempt to alarm her neighbors through the use of false information, Mrs. Cronin has chosen to either ignore or misrepresent the facts relating to the cul-de-sacs.
Mrs. Cronin has contended that because of the cul-de-sacs, a resident waited 20 to 25 minutes for a house fire call; that a man died because the fire department didn’t know how to get to his house on Longwood Drive; and that response to a Western Avenue restaurant fire was delayed. Each of these assertions is untrue and deserves a factual response.
– Regarding the house fire, the Fire Department’s own records reflect an actual response time of five minutes from the time of the call, notwithstanding the fact that the first call gave an incorrect address.
– Regarding the death on Longwood Drive: While there was admittedly some delay in the ambulance response, it was due primarily to the unavailability of an ambulance closer to the resident’s home. The ambulance was dispatched from about six miles away. But Mrs. Cronin fails to note that another engine company was on the scene within seven minutes and had initiated CPR until the ambulance arrived. The seven-minute response time was caused by a commuter train crossing gate stopping traffic, a condition that would exist with or without cul-de-sacs.
– Records show that firefighters were on the scene of the Western Avenue restaurant fire within five minutes of dispatch and noted that the Evergreen Park Fire Department was already engaged.
The indisputable fact remains that the cul-de-sacs have reduced crime and traffic while not impeding any emergency response times. In addition, Mrs. Cronin’s letter neglected to state that the community affirmed its support of cul-de-sacs at the 1996 annual civic association’s election of officers when approximately 650 residents of North Beverly voted. The slate of officers that opposed the plan was defeated 7-1.
