Cedar Valley News – October 31, 2025

Evan Swensen
October 31, 2025

A Town Without Driveways
By: Chloe Papadakis

From the fictional town of Cedar Valley, where characters from Quiet Echo continue to respond to real-world events.

I read this week about a new neighborhood in Tempe—no cars, no driveways, no parking lots. Residents walk or ride bikes everywhere, and if they need to go farther, they share rides. It’s a car-free zone, the developers say. Cleaner, quieter, more connected.

I stared at the photos on my phone for a while: smiling people with reusable bags, courtyards full of plants, kids playing without traffic in sight. It looked peaceful. But something in me tugged—a kind of homesick feeling for something I’ve never lost.

Because in Cedar Valley, our lives are measured in driveways.

My boys learned to dribble a basketball in ours. My husband fixed half the neighborhood’s lawnmowers in it. And every morning, I watch my neighbor, Mrs. O’Neill, stand at the end of hers, coffee mug in hand, waving goodbye to her daughter as she heads to work. Around here, driveways are where goodbyes happen slow and returns feel real.

I like walking, and I understand why some people want to leave cars behind. But a car-free world feels too tidy. Too planned. Life isn’t supposed to fit inside a grid of perfect walking paths. It’s supposed to be messy—mud on the tires, groceries rolling off the seat, conversations through half-open windows.

When I was a kid, my dad used to say you can tell the heart of a town by its parking lot. He meant it as a joke, but I think he was right. When people drive somewhere, they stay. They linger. They talk before getting back in the car. Movement connects us, but so does the pause before it.

While I get the dream of walkable cities, I still love the sound of an engine cooling after a long day, the crunch of gravel in the driveway, the smell of oil and rain. That’s the rhythm of real life here in Cedar Valley—the hum that reminds us we’re not standing still.

This editorial is part of the fictional Cedar Valley News series. While the people and town are fictional, the national events they reflect on are real.

It’s free, live, and fresh! Quiet Echo—A Cedar Valley News Podcast is live on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/4nV8XsE, Spotify: https://bit.ly/4hdNHfX, YouTube: https://bit.ly/48Zfu1g , and Podcastle: https://bit.ly/4pYRstE. Every day, you can hear Cedar Valley’s editorials read aloud by the voices you’ve come to know—warm, steady, and rooted in the values we share. Step into the rhythm of our town, one short reflection at a time. Wherever you listen, you’ll feel right at home. Presented by the Readers and Writers Book Club: https://bit.ly/3KLTyg4