Last June a five-year-old boy who lives in our neighborhood went missing. He had been riding his bike on his block one moment and the next he was gone. I’m sure it was a terrifying time for his family. Thankfully he was found not long after his absence was reported. What made this story particularly viral in the Haven was where he was found. Here’s Beth David’s report:
A five-year-old boy was found safe and sound in the toy department at Walmart…Fairhaven Police issued an alert at around 5:30 p.m…At 5:45, the police issued another alert saying he had been found. Sgt. Kobza also confirmed that the boy had managed to cross Route 6 on his own.
Walmart is 1.8 miles from this boy’s house, not a huge distance, even for a five-year-old. What made this story stand out was that this kid had managed to make it across Route 6. All of us who heard about this immediately tried to picture this little guy waiting for a break in four lanes of traffic, most of it moving 40+ MPH, likely near Washington St. where there are no crosswalks, to cross the stroad. Scary. Heroic, even.
I’m sure some people blamed the kid’s parents for letting him out of their sight. As the parent of fast-pedaling children, I don’t fault this kid’s parents. A lot of people commented on the boy’s independence and sense of direction. But, as that cute Japanese show Old Enough! shows us, five-year-olds (even four!) around the world are capable of running errands on their own. Especially when there’s a toy store involved.
You need to zoom out to see the real story here. The real story is that this was considered a story at all! This kid’s grandparents likely grew up in a town (whether the Haven or a comparable U.S. town) where a kid riding his bike to the toy store would not be front-page news. What happened since then?
Restrictive zoning spread new development further away from established neighborhoods and downtowns. Because these new developments were mostly single-family and didn’t allow for businesses, they forced everyone into cars to run every errand.
The town disinvested in its walkable downtowns and went all in on the growth ponzi scheme, meaning everyone had to get in their cars and go to Route 6 to do just about anything.
The mistaken notion that all things commercial should be relegated to the same road where everyone is also trying to get across town led to Route 6 developing into a stroad, an environment where pedestrians or kids on bikes are a distant afterthought if they’re even considered at all.
The five-year-old was right. He should be able to get on his bike and go to the toy store without risking his life or causing headlines. We’re the crazy ones! For creating an environment that fails to put the safety of our most vulnerable people first. For forgetting that “mixed-use” used to mean just a normal neighborhood, where you had places to walk or bike to. For regulating against the very evolutionary growth processes that made our neighborhoods desirable in the first place.
Do we want to live in a thriving and financially sustainable town? A diverse community with housing of all types throughout each neighborhood? A place where young people, senior citizens and people with disabilities have greater freedom and independence?
Then we need to follow this biking five-year-old. We need to ask him where he wants to go. We need to figure out what we need to do so he can get there safely. Then we need to do those things— without waiting around for grants or master plans— and keep doing them. Wash, rinse, repeat. This is how we get there. It’s time to start pedaling!
Please get an interview with the boy if you can!!