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Turn Your Garage Into a Starbucks

Friday, Dec 19, 2008 | Updated 3:23 PM EST

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Turning garages into storefronts in car-oriented neighborhoods is becoming more popular

It's kind of hard to imagine, but turning garages into storefronts in car-oriented neighborhoods like Forest Ridge in Fairland? It helps to encourage walking to your destination while bringing people closer together, reports Just Up the Pike.

It's not easy to get people to leave their cars home in many of East County's subdivisions, where disconnected streets and a rigid separation of residential and business areas makes it almost impossible to get anywhere by foot.

People don't really get to know their neighbors, because they don't have a reason to go outside other than to take care of their yard. In Four Corners, more or less a "walkable" suburban neighborhood, residents can claim a church, a Starbucks, and a high school within walking distance as places where people can meet each other. Can most East County neighborhoods say the same?

Read the full article on Just Up the Pike, click here.