Photo Credit: Roving Rube. Viewpoint: 43rd St. between 6th and 7th Ave., looking west; 2/3/02 1:07 PM.

Notes (Roving Rube): 43rd Street is "super-developed"; meaning that the buildings bordering it in certain stretches are very tall, and plunge it into eternal shadow. This is also the case with 41st , 56th and 58th Streets.

As you may have figured out by now, this is because these streets border 42nd and 57th streets, both two-way triple-wide cross-streets that have sufficient space for towers and sun both. The bordering streets tend to get the back end of the skyscrapers, and no light.

If only we could go back to 1811 and convince the commissioners who drew up the grid plan then to make all the side streets wider -- they'd just lose a few blocks way at the top of Manhattan. Plus leave some place to put the garbage other than in the middle of the sidewalk.