View From The Future

Colonel Baker Returns to See What His "Field" Looks Like in 2020

We all know our City's Founder, Col. Thomas Baker, died in 1872. But what if he were able to "Go Back To The Future" and see what his "Field" looks like "Today" -- sometime during the year 2020???

What Would He See?

Here's how one participant in the process would describe what Colonel Baker would see . . .

From 30,000 feet, Colonel Thomas Baker has a magnificent view of the southern tip of the great San Joaquin Valley. The air is so clear and free of pollutants he can readily see the Sierras to the east and the coastal range to the west. Despite the curvature of the earth, the air is so pristine he can see almost all the way to Sacramento at the northern end of the valley!

He refuses to look south to Los Angeles. He understands that in the year 2000, it represented all he hopes Bakersfield has not become, that is, a "world class" example of urban sprawl, leapfrog development, air pollution, and parking-lot freeways. He resists the temptation to look to the south. Instead he hopes Los Angeles now enjoys the same clear air he sees over Bakersfield. Clear air and clean water were taken for granted in my day, he thought to himself. It looks as though Bakersfield has now gone full circle.

As the pilot lines up the aircraft for landing, Tom notices the downtown area with a beautiful mix of tall buildings along the Kern River interspersed with lush green open spaces, parks and other waterways seemingly everywhere.

Tom doesn't really understand these issues but he's told new technology and the satellite positioning system permit landing in any weather. Even during our foggiest days, this airport operates 100% of the time.

He sees citrus groves north of the airport. Col. Baker's says out loud, "This must certainly be the breadbasket of America!" Everything looked so green and productive to him.

His plane touches down and a flight attendant announces, "Welcome to Bakersfield International Airport!" His attention is focused on a modern air terminal with an array of large jet aircraft pulling in and others taking off. He joins the stream of people walking toward the baggage area and notices electronic boards announcing arrivals. He sees a listing of major domestic hubs in the US. He also sees foreign and domestic destinations on departure boards. Everything is so efficient and convenient.

Welcome to Bakersfield International Airport!

Because of the consolidated terminal design, he quickly locates his baggage. Even though the terminal is large and modern, it somehow keeps the friendly small-town feeling Bakersfield is noted for.

He hails a cab from a queue at curbside. Usually he doesn't care to have a loquacious driver. Somehow this time is different. His driver introduces himself and says, "Hi, I'm Tito. Where do you want to go?"

Tom Baker thinks for a moment, looks at his watch and says, "You know, I'm ahead of schedule. Why don't you give me a little tour of Bakersfield?" "At your service," Tito responded with a smile that anticipated a larger than normal fare . . . and tip.

As they drove west from the airport on Seventh Standard Road, Tom noticed Highway 99 with widened lanes -- now called a "beltway", he notices. Attractive industrial buildings are on both sides. Then something almost took his breath away -- a train going so fast he almost missed seeing it when he blinked his eye.

What's that?"

"Oh, that's our high-speed train that takes people from Bakersfield to San Francisco in about 90 minutes. Or to Los Angeles in only 30 minutes! For these shorter distances, it's as fast as flying and less stressful. You ought to see the interior of the cars. They're like the first class cabin in a Boeing 797! What a way to 'fly'!", Tito concluded.

Driving down Highway 99, they approached the 24th Street off-ramp and -- whew! -- what a beautiful entry to my old field, Tom thought. A major arch extended over the intersection of the freeways -- with flowers, trees and water fountains everywhere! A sign appropriately and artfully made it very clear the colonel was entering his "field".

"Look," Tito called out, "there's a sculpture of our community's founder, Colonel Thomas Baker. Ever hear of him? Our city has statues and art exhibits at almost every turn."

"Interesting," Tom said under his breath.

After they turned eastbound on 24th Street, Tom asked, "What's that up ahead?"

"That's what makes Bakersfield really a great place to live and raise a family. We used to call it 'in fill' because we wanted to reverse the trend of outward growth that took rich farmland out of production and created lots of other problems -- like pollution from commuting cars.

"People who do commute here now are using alternative fuel or electric cars -- or a combin