Talk:Altoona (Wisconsin)

Re-merge Altoona & Eau Claire?
[To Wistoney:] I've seen you've done a lot of good work and I don't want to do anything to question that. However, I wonder whether Altoona and Eau Claire shouldn't have their information on a single page. They are contiguous and a visitor to either town would probably benefit from the information about the other town. I know that treating Altoona as little more than a neighborhood of Eau Claire would damage civic pride but, focusing on the out of town visitor, it seems to make more sense. Do you agree? (WT-en) Butwhatdoiknow 22:29, 8 October 2007 (EDT) [You can post your response here and I will see it]


 * I, for one, don't agree that it should be merged. Travelers should have no problem clicking over to Altoona to see what's there. I feel that merging the 'burbs into cities blurs and congests city articles and gives short shrift to towns. (WT-en) OldPine 11:42, 9 October 2007 (EDT)

This sounds like a general rule (for which, one hopes, there would always be exceptions in the appropriate circumstances). Are you familiar with the Eau Claire area in particular? (WT-en) Butwhatdoiknow 13:29, 9 October 2007 (EDT)


 * No, I'm not. May I ask why you're so keen on including it in Eau Claire? (WT-en) OldPine 13:37, 9 October 2007 (EDT)

Altoona has a population of about 7,000. Eau Claire 62,000. So this is not really a situation of a city (e.g. Minneapolis) with a suburb (e.g. Bloomington). Rather, it is the city the size of a typical suburb with a contiguous village. And when I say contiguous, I mean it. Unless you know the political boundary, you would not know when you left Eau Claire and entered Altoona. Further, there is nothing that makes Altoona of particular interest as a tourist destination separate from Eau Claire.

So, while the general rule may be to give “suburbs” their own pages, there ought to be an exception when the “suburb” is just too small, indistinct, and lacking in attractions for a traveler to merit a separate page. I respectfully suggest that Altoona is such a “suburb.”

Turning to your question: I am so keen on including Altoona in Eau Claire because I do not want WikiTravel to become so Balkanized that travelers find it of little use without spending hours clicking on separate entries for each tiny community within what is already a fairly small metropolitan area. (WT-en) Butwhatdoiknow 17:56, 9 October 2007 (EDT)


 * Ah well, you see I think that they all merit their own separate page and that travelers are not inconvenienced, nor forced to spend hours. Additionally, I feel that it makes Wikivoyage less comprehensive. You are certainly entitled to your opinion and I know there are others on Wikivoyage who share it. -- (WT-en) OldPine 20:01, 9 October 2007 (EDT)

O.k., let's give it a bit of time and see whether Wistoney will chime in with the rationale for creating the separate page in the first place. (WT-en) Butwhatdoiknow 21:28, 9 October 2007 (EDT)