Best Bench

There should be more benches in the city. They help to make the experience of being in public space about being a time to pause and take time and watch the world going by. Maybe it would help if we valued our benches more. Maybe the answer is Guerilla Benching . But this 'best bench' nomination from Santa Cruz in US makes a good start.It's taken from the Best of selection by the paper Good Times Santa Cruz

Best Bench
Mom’s Corner (Cayuga and James Streets)

Memorial benches have just the right touch—they commemorate the pleasures and desires of the people they’re dedicated to without any of the pomp of a statue. While most benches overlook stunning seascapes or occupy quiet nooks in mountain groves, the one for Martha Hartman Day sits right outside the house she lived in for 20 years, at an intersection, overlooking nothing more grandiose than a neighbor’s front lawn. It’s not the most comfortable bench in Santa Cruz—really, it’s just a cement ledge with a worn benchback—but it does come with a companion water fountain (Matey’s Fountain) that actually works, and a sign that invites all who sit there to drink alcohol and smoke cigarettes. “Mom” wasn’t a mayor or a movie star. She was just someone who liked to unwind under a tree, cocktail in one hand, coffin nail in the other, and ponder life to the settling glow of sundown. If that doesn’t deserve a piece of public honor, then I don’t know what does. | Chris J. Magyar

and this post as a response:

Best Bench
RE: Best Bench

Dear Chris Mayer,

Thanks for recognizing Mom and her bench - I think... If I'd known you were coming, I would have asked a tenant to put a cushion out there so it would have been more comfortable for you. :)

The only bone of contention I have is that I think you may be mistaken in that I invite alcohol use at the bench. I don't think I do. Cigarettes, yes...if you take your butts with you; but I would frown upon drinking alcohol there. :)

When Mom brough her gin and water outside to the corner it was a totally different time in Santa Cruz. She, unlike today's guests, was also on her own private property. :)

On the other hand, you'd be surprised to find out how comfortable ( and popular) that bench is when you're dragging a couple of kids, the family dog, and pushin' a baby carriage up from the beach. For those families coming back from the beach & Boardwalk, that bench is a Godsend.

Honest! Sometimes I even hear the exclamations - like: "Thank God! Just another five minutes and we'll be home..." :)

How It Came To Be...

Several years back we had a stalker in the neighborhood. He was called the Seabright rapist. He was the first one, not the second one. :)
I had an open corner lot and all female tenants (students) in the corner house at that time and was really concerned for them. So I decided on a fence ...figuring that any self-respecting rapist would be smart enough not to want to get cornered. So, I fenced the property. Then one day I came out to mow the lawn and found that because the fence was so close to the bay tree, I could no longer get the lawn mower around that tree. So, I really HAD to do something! :::high blood pressure, ya know:::

That, was the birth of Mom's Bench. It was quite easy to do, really. Over the years I have witnessed hundreds of bench guests, scores of "thank-you's", several "Cool's!" and a few "How-hard-was-it-to-do's." Frankly, were it not for the taggers, they'd be a great addition to any neighborhood.

And thanks for the recognition.

Steve Hartman
Lincoln, MT.

NOTE: The only person I know of that used the bench regularly was former Mayor, Katherine Byers, on her morning jaunts.