Carpenter Clan

Hey - Look who Scott found in the Free Press!
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Readers react to Google's Detroit street-level maps
December 19, 2007
BY MIKE WENDLAND


First though, most of the readers contacting me have complained that Google's coverage is limited, with only the city covered and minimal images from surrounding areas. Google says it hopes to expand coverage but realistically, that's probably not going to happen any time soon.

While readers haven't sent me any eye-raising photos of our streets, Patrick Neaton directed me to 3190 Second Ave. in Detroit and suggested I pan the view east/southeast. There I found a group of folks lounging on a trash-covered sidewalk.

What are they doing?

"If I had to guess I would say sunbathing," says Neaton. "This can be Detroit's answer to the famous San Francisco sunbathing women captured by Google."
A reader named Dave had some fun with an image he found along Michigan Avenue:

"They've been watching a lot longer than you may realize!" he says, tongue planted firmly in cheek. "It was in 1948 that George Orwell wrote '1984.' Take a look at Old Glory in the window, count the stars!! We had a 48-star flag in 1948. Another thing, take the current year, 2007, subtract the last full year of the 48-star flag, 1959. What do you get? 48!! Now look at the address that popped up for this view, 9202. The first two digits divided by the last two equals 46. The same digit appears twice so add two. What do you get? Surprise 48!! Lastly, N 42 degrees 24 minutes nearly bisects the city of Detroit, so transpose only the first half of the figures and add...48 yet again!! Well, this is certainly more than mere coincidence, more like conspiracy. But by whom and for what? I trust that the Free Press will assign their best investigative reporters to the case."

And reader Frank Carpenter checked out his old stomping grounds:

"Here's a Twilight Zone moment for you. Zoom into Gratiot Avenue S.E. of Mack (towards downtown), now advance towards N.E. on Gratiot towards Mack. As you cross Mack Ave. the sky goes from clear blue to cloud covered and back to clear blue when you get all the way across. This was the neighborhood I grew up in and wanted to see what was still there. The block where I grew up (2900 block of Meldrum) no longer has one house left. The Catholic Church (Our Lady Of Sorrows) is the only thing left standing on that block."