Is there anybody out there? Just nod if you can hear me.

I realize I've been a bit lax over the holidays about posting but, hey, my boyfriend was back in town and for that, I wasn't sorry. Love him. Miss him. Wish he was here.

That said, I'm wondering if anyone's even noticed that I haven't posted. I haven't exactly publicized this blog the way I should have, but I did send the link to a few good friends. I guess I was hoping someone might comment. So far, no one has.

I've managed to wrangle a couple of freelance projects for the WDDC through my good friend, Ann Keefer, and that's kept me busy for much of the day and night. I think it's the beginning of what I hope will be a beautiful friendship, this freelance gig. They are working so hard to get downtown efforts moving in the right direction -- PROGRESS. Things really are happening all over the place and this freelance piece should really bring that point home. I'm done with the first draft and overall, I have to say I think it's pretty good. I hope they'll be pleased and the revisions will be few.

Meanwhile, I'm working (with lots of help from David on the technical side) on getting a new and improved WordPress web site and blog up and running, though I must admit that WordPress is a great deal more complex to manage than Blogger. My expectation is that WordPress' adaptability will outshine the steeper learning curve. I should be able to do a great deal more with it, in other words. As soon as it's ready to launch publicly, everyone will be notified. Believe me.

Somebody comment. Please!

Throw on a second blanket

Sheesh! Just as the cold breaks, we get hit with a new blanket -- this time, fog. Thick, pea-soup-type fog. It's so thick, in fact, that I can't distinguish anything out of my south-facing window except the office building 100 yards away and the green Burlington Northern engine and a coral-colored caboose on the nearby tracks. Everything beyond that is just a soupy blur. Two hours ago I thought I'd hit the gym this afternoon; now I'm thinking I may be better off to stay put.

Speaking of soup, I went to the Old Mill Tasty Shop for a bowl of her fabulous tomato bisque and talked a bit to owner Mary Wright about neighborhood developments. She says an improved web site is in the works for the Wichita Downtown Development Corporation. The WDDC's "Life Happens Here" site, while a great idea six years ago, doesn't go far enough to update visitors about Old Town and downtown news. Like me, she agrees that there are lots of things going on downtown that people who live and work here just don't know about. So a better outlet for neighborhood news is certainly welcomed.

TIF districts and parking have also been in the news this week, now that the city and county have approved the parameters and agreed on plans for a tax-financed improvement district around the Intrust Bank Area. Hallelujah! It seems as though the city and county need to get their respective and combined acts together before things start happening. That said, Mary and I both wondered what was or is going on with a couple of key Old Town real estate assets: the old Union Station and the former Spaghetti Warehouse buildings that straddle either side of the train tracks. Mary says she's grateful that the Old Mill has access to parking behind the building and says her patrons also utilize the Spaghetti Warehouse parking lot. What will happen with parking when the arena's completed has her and other Old Town merchants a bit anxious.

As for Union Station -- that's been the subject of a lot of speculation and rumor over the past two or three years. Many residents, myself included, feel that a station there is the natural location if the Heartland Flyer agrees to extend its reach from Oklahoma City to Kansas City with a stop in Wichita. But what's the city's role in perhaps encouraging the utilization of that building for a station? And will Cox Communications' efforts to sell those buildings impact a station site decision? All questions a lot of us would love to have answers to.

As for other Old Town developments du jour, the city wisely opted to postpone placement of the "spire" atop the Intrust Bank Arena. I'm thinking the weather had something to do with it. Next possible date for this : Jan. 6 at 1:30 p.m.

In addition, The Eagle reports this afternoon that Mayor Carl Brewer announced today the formation of a steering committee of residents to help guide downtown development. This will include the mayor's push to connect Old Town with the Intrust Bank Arena, the museums on the river and the Arkansas River banks, and the WaterWalk.

Crane watching

Yesterday's Arctic express combined with 2.5 inches of snowfall has cast one mighty chilly blanket over Old Town. Despite that, a brief stroll around the area verified what we all already know: The weather outside is may be frightful, but during business hours, construction never seems to quit. Cranes move materials into place at the arena and hold aloft welders working on its uppermost north-facing outside walls. Eastbound drivers on Douglas dodge the orange cones and heavy equipment under the train overpass while construction workers climb above and below the downtown streets. The pace of progress in the area is impressive, weather or no. That said, I can't help but feel sorry for the guys working those jobs and wonder if they ever get warmed up after such long hours in the bitter cold.

Life comes at you

Well, since my first ambiguous post in February I've been thinking a lot. I was thinking at first about all the things I could do if I weren't working at The Wichita Eagle, my employer for the past 22 years. Then in June, I was offered a buyout and decided that though the lump-sum severance offer was insulting, it nonetheless opened a door. Since then I've concluded that writing is what I'm really best at and since I live in Old Town, I want to help other folks who live in "Everybody's Neighborhood" find out what's going on here, too. With a full-scale downtown improvement push going on, the ongoing construction of the Intrust Bank Arena, the additions to various improvement and parking plans and the near-constant business and civic happenings I continue to hear about in a not-so-timely fashion, it's time to really take this seriously.

Welcome to Old Town Confidential

It's time to get a blog going for people who live, work and play in Wichita's Old Town and downtown areas. I plan to tap into life in the neighborhoods that make up the center of our city and talk to the folks who are right in the middle of all the action. Sometimes that will be business owners, sometimes residents, sometimes officials; sometimes I hope, it will be YOU. The idea is to more accurately tell people what they might not know but should about this wonderful and historic core of the city. I welcome input, advice, suggestions and most of all, feedback.