There was a shooting outside of Rugged Warehouse on Friday afternoon; somehow I am not surprised by the incident. I believe that upon entering the City borders, a sign should state the following: Welcome to College Park – City of Keg Stands and High Crime. This truly summarizes the City, unlike the current crock about “A Livable Community,” or whatever it actually says. After perusing the City’s website, I stumbled across the College Park Vision written by the City Council, “In the 21st century, the City of College Park will be a vibrant and prosperous residential, commercial and educational community with citizens working cooperatively to revitalize the City. The City will have safe and harmonious neighborhoods; a clean, attractive and healthy natural environment; efficient public facilities and services; visually pleasing, pedestrian-oriented streetscapes; a true Town Center downtown; mixed-use commercial areas; and convenient transportation systems.” Thankfully there are 90 or so years left in the 21st century. It’s time for business.
Do you remember your first visit to College Park? Perhaps it was love at first sight. For me, it was a different story. I hated every one of my college visits, so maybe I am not the best judge of college character. However, driving along Route One on a gray and rainy day is sometimes depressing, to say the least. I trudged down from New Jersey with my Father one particularly cold fall morning. We stopped at College Park Diner for a quick bite to eat; he was smitten with the $3.99 breakfast. First glance at the College Park Motel, and I was instantly terrified.
The tide changed once the Maryland tour began. I must admit, we have a truly talented group of tour guides. Even at the time, I realized that they were creepily obsessed with their job, but they never failed to dazzle me with their priceless information and quick maneuvering. It also helps that our campus is really beautiful. Thank you, Facilities! We are especially fortunate to have the opportunity to study in Van Munching. Have you ever taken a class in Cole Field House? If you are so lucky to avoid it, please do; it’s like a prison.
The University of Maryland really is perfect, College Park aside. The School has just about anything you could ever want, and is filled with great people, like that kid who walks around with no shoes in sub-freezing weather. Are you interested in joining the Cornhole Club? Oh good, because we have that. However, what we don’t have is the perfect city. I may go as far as to say that it does detract slightly from the University. When I give prospective students the, “I LOVE MARYLAND” spiel, I always leave out that little statistic that quotes us as one of the most dangerous campuses in the country. Parking is a whole other issue. If you know a place where your visitors can park and avoid the $2/hour meters or a hefty ticket, please share the wealth. Regardless, there is no shortage of prospective students clawing to come to Maryland. It’s such an experience, that a boatload of kids from New Jersey and New York are clawing to go here. We are so cool, that even the stench that drifts out of the Santa Fe alley isn’t enough to lower our application rate. I guess it’s well worth the risk.