To the editor:

The recent destruction of a remnant prairie unfortunately fits a pattern set by the city. Street work is an obvious example.

Awhile back, they decided to pave the street I live on. The one block was torn up for no less than three months in order to put down a layer of asphalt. At the end, there are many more cracks than there were before the work started.

Then we got a “bike boulevard” on 21st street where one rarely sees a bike.

Recent work on 20th Street included new storm drains to alleviate flooding, which has supposedly been a problem. Months later, sandbags are still blocking the drains.

The 1900 block of Alabama has been closed for months. There was a little sidewalk repair at the beginning, but nothing has been done since. Has it been forgotten?

I have a theory that may explain this and the prairie debacle. It is that tasks are handed out to staff or contractors and then forgotten; no one checks up on what is done, how it is done, or if it is not done. What is needed is oversight by competent supervisors. If there are any. If the City Commission wants to investigate something, this pattern would be a good start.

Adrian Melott,

Lawrence