City Wishlist: 5 Gifts Under Salem's Christmas Tree

To get in the Christmas spirit, we decided to put together a wish list for the city.

What does Salem want under its Christmas tree? Here are our picks for the list.

Have your own ideas? Feel free to add them in the comments.

A Quicker Way to Route 128
Route 128 has a reputation for being a little bit like the Wild West when it comes to driving, but just getting on the roadway from the downtown can be an adventure in and of itself.  North and Margin streets, left on Gardener, right on Pulaski, right on 114/Andover Street — whichever way you get to 128, it never seems simple. How cool would it be if we had a straight shot to it from the downtown? We'd love the gift of an easier ride (and so would our cars), but we're having a little trouble figuring out how'd we'd wrap this one and get it under the tree.

A Larger Voter Turnout

We snagged this idea from a reader who commented on our for the City. Our primary was low this year with an . It did in November, but we think we can do better. We hope we can fit  all the registered voters who make up the other 79 percent under the tree!

Premiere Invites to "The Lords of Salem"

movies might be your thing, or they might not. However you feel about his scary style, it was pretty cool to have movie crews in our city in November, and we bet a few of you wouldn't mind an invite to the 2012 premiere of this film. This item would most definitely fit under the tree.

Bridge Street

We know things will be great when they're done but it's been Salem's version of the Big Dig for awhile. with a big sparkly bow would be a great Christmas gift for the city. We would all be happier and so would businesses. We're pretty sure our cars would love it too. Imagine what it would be like to wake up on Christmas morning with historic lamp posts in place and a smooth driving service?

Super Secret Roads Just for Residents

We all know how congested downtown Salem can get at Halloween, at rush hour and even during completely random times. We think it would be cool if there was a secret road system just for residents, so we could zip around all the traffic. Can you imagine how convenient life would be if you could drive from and Highland Avenue to downtown without traffic? We'd love to get passes for this magical roadway in our stockings.