I don't think the article "suggests that you eschew option three" at all.
The author recommended several microframeworks. He's arguing against large, monolithic frameworks and pointing towards a more pragmatic, YAGNI approach.
Use a small framework that gives you simple things -- URL routing, JSON parsing, etc. Maybe a base application structure to keep things sane.
You can do a lot of very useful things in a small, reusable microframework that don't have the level of complexity of a larger framework like Zend.
edit: I knew your name was familiar. Good work on Catalyst. My choice in framework really depends on the project.
The author recommended several microframeworks. He's arguing against large, monolithic frameworks and pointing towards a more pragmatic, YAGNI approach.
Use a small framework that gives you simple things -- URL routing, JSON parsing, etc. Maybe a base application structure to keep things sane.
You can do a lot of very useful things in a small, reusable microframework that don't have the level of complexity of a larger framework like Zend.
edit: I knew your name was familiar. Good work on Catalyst. My choice in framework really depends on the project.