Fall 2020 - 1736 Magazine

Second, municipal authorities can do their part by
aggressively ridding public spaces of litter and graffiti.
Then, they can focus attention toward derelict private
properties through increased code enforcement, starting
with the most egregious violators. No reasonable person
would suggest punishing property owners for having a
vacant building, but most can agree broken windows,
cracked stucco and crumbling facades deserve a citation.
Building owners and their tenants also could take a
little more pride in their properties. Sweep out your
doorways. Pick up your trash – even litter on the
“public” part of the sidewalk. It only takes a minute. And
for goodness sake, would it kill ’ya to clean your facades
every once in a while? (Harbor Freight sells a pressure
washer strong enough to peel the chewing gum off concrete
for 80 bucks; I highly recommend it).
As individuals, we can do a much better job of practicing
situational awareness and heading off trouble
before it starts. A surprising number of downtown auto
burglaries, for instance, result from people neglecting to
lock their car doors or by leaving valuables in plain view
for an easy smash-and-grab.
This is one area I don't mind “victim blaming” because
I, myself, have been negligent. I once let my old Pontiac
sit in the employee parking lot unlocked over a weekend.
On Monday morning I discovered the steering column
had been cracked open during a failed attempt to steal a
car that I (wrongly) assumed was not worth stealing.
Luckily for me, the criminal was an amateur; any selfrespecting
car thief should have been able to make off
with a General Motors-built model from the 1980s. The
numskull even left behind the screwdriver he unsuccessfully
deployed to jimmy my ignition switch.
I kept that Pontiac for two more years, with the doors
always locked. I eventually sold the car. The screwdriver,
however, remains in my toolbox to this day.
My final word of advice – particularly to you youngsters
going out for a drink or three – would be to behave
yourselves and keep your egos in check. Many free
rides to jail have been instigated by nothing more than
an innocent bump at the bar or a perceived slight from
across the room.
Although the laws of the universe dictate people who
go out looking for trouble eventually find it, there's
nothing in the statute’s fine print that says you must be
the one to give some chowderhead the confrontation he
seeks.
As Kenny Rogers once said, “walk away from trouble if
you can.”
That’s sage advice. Even in downtown Augusta, where
there’s not much trouble to begin with.
“
First, we all need to have
realistic expectations
when it comes to
downtown Augusta. The
downtown of every large
and mid-sized metro area
is going to have a certain
degree of seediness: aging
infrastructure, buildings
in various states of
disrepair, panhandlers,
etc. It is unrealistic to
expect Augusta – with
its 19th and early 20th
century architecture and
infrastructure – to look
like Disneyland.
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