Text The Times.

Text The Times.

Congratulations to the new Marion Police Officers. [ Editor’s Note: I guess I’m getting older, because in my head, I’m still like, I don’t know, early 30s or something, so it’s getting harder to peg how old people younger than me are now. So, when I walked in at the Marion Police Department to take the picture of their newest officers, I expected them to be young, I suppose, but they looked like teenagers! Now, I know they’re not, but it was kind of hard to believe that these “ kids” ( who are in their mid- to- late 20s) were “ real” police officers.

They were very nice and seemed as though they will make a great addition to the Marion Police force. And God bless them for it, because I don’t want to be out there fight-ing crime, and I’m sure you don’t either]

*** I have lived in the same house in West Memphis for 20 years. When I moved in we planted 15 crepe myrtle trees along the fence line. Last week the utility company decided that the trees needed to be cut down due to a wire hanging above them. I told them they were pruned yearly and had never been an issue. They however decided to cut them to the ground. Now my yard has no personality and the trees we planted when we bought the house no longer exist. Why did the trees suddenly become a problem. They have never been an issue before. I called a supervisor and he agreed with me but by the time he got in touch with the workers the trees were gone. I understand eminent domain but really? Whenever we decide to invest in landscape something happens. Plumbing pipes need to be replaced so dig up the 29 year old holly bushes. An electrical wire is above the trees. Cut them to the ground. Beautify West Memphis? Really? I believe in recycling but not money. [ Editor’s Note: Well, that is unfortunate. I have a nice shallow “ ditch” that runs through my back yard thanks to some “ necessary” digging by the city from about five years ago, so I feel your pain. I will say this, though, those crepe myrtles are near impossible to kill, so unless they took out they roots, they’ll be back]

*** You would think after about 100 years; West Memphis would modernize from old railroad ragged Depot, old water tower, cowboy town building covered with signs, banners & graffiti, terrible streets; that hundreds of vehicles use every day. East side of W.M. to me would be an embarrassment of tourist if got lost and turned down the wrong streets. It looks like if our elected politicians can get large grants for a smooth landing for a few planes a day; they could also get a large grant to serve the majority population and fix the streets. Maybe it’s the leadership. It’s hard to point fingers at any particular purpose but one great solution is to change the leadership. bottom line: Let’s move forward and put all our tax payers first! God bless all of our city workers and add to our prayers for positive leadership and representation. [ Editor’s Note: It may not seem like it, but the city has done a great deal in recent years to beautify the community, especially in the area you describe, where the Main Street Initiative has put a lot of time and energy into improving the appearance of that strip of East Broadway. It’s important to note a couple of things: One is that grant money is almost always earmarked for very specific purposes and can’t just be spent on whatever. Another is that much of the area you mentioned is privately owned, and thus not really the city’s place or responsibility to clean it up, as long as there are no code violations. If you do insist on pointing fingers, property owners are in the public record, and you could start there]

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