Below is an aerial photo from www.FlashEarth.com showing Eagleview Middle School on the left, the construction site of Crown Hill at Rockrimmon in the center and the Village Center on the right. The center, with its Safeway, Pikes Peak Library branch, McDonalds and assorted shops, is a magnet for kids after school.

For months, the site resembled a strip mine as crews excavated 20 feet, dug up clay, soaked it and replaced it. For more than a year, the sidewalk has been closed along Vindicator Drive, a busy four-lane road carrying Mountain Shadows and Peregrine residents to and from Interstate 25. Rockrimmon residents also use it to reach the west side.

It’s funny. Colorado Springs ranks second only to San Jose, Calif., in per capita Internet use, according to national surveys. Folks here love their Internet. They read The Gazette online. They shop online. They blog — though not with me, yet.

But Internet popularity doesn’t seem to extend to neighborhood Web sites. Lukewarm is the most common response I get.

Still, I think it’s inevitable that most neighborhoods will join the e-age. And there are groups out there trying to help.

The Council of Neighbors & Organizations has a Web site at www.cscono.org with links to government and neighborhood Web sites and information. It’s a good template for neighborhoods seeking ideas about building their own Web sites.

If you aren’t that ambitious, or technologically savvy, there’s help. Neighborhood groups and nonprofit organizations can set up free, interactive Web sites. Contact www.neighborhoodlink.com.

Neighborhood Link was founded in Denver in 1997 and serves more than 33,000 groups in four dozen or more metropolitan areas.

Let me know how it works!

Probably the most frightening thing for any neighborhood is the prospect of convicted criminals, especially “registered sex offenders,” moving in. But authorities say the convicts must have a place to live when released from prison and cheap motels and apartments need customers.

West-siders were upset in May when Vernon Eugene Stewart, below, moved into the Creekside Apartments after leaving prison with the “sexually violent predator” tag. He was re-arrested Sept. 12 on a parole violation.

Lists of registered sex offenders, their photos and addresses are available from Colorado Springs Police on-line at http://www.springsgov.com/Page.asp?NavID=6043

The El Paso County Sheriff’s Department keeps its list at http://shr2.elpasoco.com/sexoffenders/

And both Web sites have links to state and federal lists.

If you haven’t driven west on Garden of the Gods Road and experienced the Rusina Road cross-over, it might be a little hard to imagine. Below is a map of the intersection showing how westbound motorists cut off people trying to exit the interstate.

In the interest of full disclosure, I must admit that I have been guilty of making the same maneuver many times when construction on Mark Dabling Boulevard made it difficult to reach Rockrimmon.

Anyway, the traffic lights will stop cars exiting I-25, giving Garden of the Gods traffic the right-of-way to turn north on Rusina.

Below are “before” and “after” photos of South Conejos Street, bordered by West Colorado Avenue to the north, Cimarron Street to the south, Interstate 25 and Fountain Creek on the west and the railroad tracks and Sierra Madre Street on the east.

In the center of the “before” photo, near the label “Confluence Park” is the site of John Ornelas’ family home on Vermijo Avenue. An old lumber yard and junkyard are visible. Cimino Drive was drawn into the photo. Chadbourn Gospel Mission church is visible at the very bottom of the photo.

The “after” photo shows sidewalks, pavilions and the playground of America the Beautiful Park. The fountain on the west side was still under construction when this photo was taken. And the road was known then as “Confluence Park Boulevard.” It is now “Cimino Drive.” The footbridge visible crossing Fountain Creek at the top once carried a railroad bridge that children in the neighborhood crossed to reach Washington Elementary School west of I-25.

The blog is new. But it’s the same, reliable Side Streets, which has been running in The Gazette twice a week since July 2002. Here’s a link to previous Side Streets columns: http://www.gazette.com/sections/metro/side-streets/

With the blog, I won’t have to wait until Monday or Thursday to update you about neighborhood issues. Or answer questions individually, via e-mail.

For example, I should have given everyone phone numbers of the Colorado Springs Code Enforcement folks for anyone wanting to report a violation. So here it is: 444-7891. And since they don’t take anonymous complaints, be prepared to give your name and contact information.