Our Sunday Morning bike ride took us east as far as Juan Tabo Blvd. yesterday, highlighted by a trip to the beautiful new public library branch at Central Ave. and San Pablo in the International District.

Arriving at about 11:00 A.M., we were too early for the branch’s Sunday hours (1:00 to 5:00 PM), so we just took a few photos, still impressed that this branch is open at all on Sunday.

Can’t wait for my first time inside, a sentiment evidently shared by two teenagers who went up to the front doors while we were taking photos. Their reaction and interest in coming back to the Library when it was opened brightened my, now, former schoolteacher’s heart.

The only noticeable downside to all this Library goodness was our entry to the Library’s grounds riding west on Chico (which parallels Central Ave. and is about 1,000,000,000% safer to cycle than Central Ave., particularly in this stretch). There’s no curb ramp anywhere on Chico for neighborhood folks in wheelchairs, or out of neighborhood folks on bicycles, to roll up to get there.

The photo above looking across Chico illustrates where such a curb ramp and accompanying crosswalk should probably go. Despite my poor photography, you can probably make our the continuation of crosswalk striping right up to the Library’s front doors.

Until that level of ADA service just stops at Chico.

It’s very possible that such work and more is planned for Chico at the Library, and maybe it’s a case of such roadwork improvements not being chronologically aligned with the Library’s Grand Opening. Further evidence of this possibility is that there’s currently still no crosswalk striping anywhere near Chico and the Library:

Amid the wonderfulness that is this new library branch, particularly in this overly neglected part of town, the lack of proper access from the neglected neighborhoods directly north of the new branch shouldn’t be take focus away from all the great planning and implementation put into this effort.

But that lack of access should still get fixed. Now.