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City's Easter basket filled with goodies
Published Sunday, March 23, 2008
Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls, good morning and happy Easter!
Hopefully, everyone will remember the real reason we celebrate Easter today. It’s not about chocolate and bunnies, but about the resurrection of God’s son.
But after you finish with church services, I hope you’ll take a few minutes to put on your imagination caps for a minute.
Remember the wonder of the imagination caps in your childhood?
Cracking out the imagination cap serves several purposes, from exercising the gray matter inside the big egg on top of your shoulders to just having a little fun.
For those of you who, in your growing old, have either lost your imagination caps or struggle to think outside the tangible adult dimension, please stop reading now.
For the rest of you, snap on that chinstrap — OK, I had an older brother so my imagination cap was really more of a football helmet — and let’s get started.
Imagine the City of Natchez’s Easter basket. If you were the Easter Bunny and were in charge of filling the basket, what would you put into it?
What kind of goodies would wait beneath the unearthly green plastic grass?
What would I do? Easy.
Just past the package of Martian-created Peeps is a box of annexation.
“B&B” is emblazoned on the annexation box, along with “new and improved” and “now with Splenda ©.”
As former Natchez Mayor Tony Byrne describes it, “B&B” annexation is the way to go.
Tourism naysayers, stop. Don’t freak out at the B&B label; this doesn’t have anything to do with bed and breakfasts.
This B&B stands for Beau Pre and Broadmoor.
Both subdivisions are prime targets for annexation and the city should be looking seriously at this.
Annexing both subdivisions needs to happen soon. In fact, it should have already happened. The problem is that annexation can be the third rail of local politics. The annexees often fuss at the idea of paying for more taxes. The existing citizens can fuss because it means city resources will be stretched a bit as the city absorbs the new areas.
So, like the electrified rail on big city subway systems, politicians shy away.
Annexation needs to be an issue in the city right now, even if politicians turn into a marshmallow Peep when you ask them about it.
Just past the annexation box, next to the chocolate rabbit is a bag of asphalt — a big bag of asphalt.
City streets are in the worst shape in recent memory. Major entry ways into the city are in poor shape.
Among the worst are Homochitto and Martin Luther King Jr. streets. Pretty soon, the city is going to be sued for the dental damage caused by the unintentional speed bumps on MLK.
A jarring ride to the polls certainly will make a lot of frustrated-with-the-status-quo voters.
So there you have it: yours truly’s thoughts on what the city needs for Easter. We’ve only got a short amount of time before the May 6 municipal primary election is here.
In the meantime, we should all be thinking about our wishes — Easter and otherwise — for the city.
By the way, does anyone else notice that despite having been out of office for 20 years, Tony Byrne still leads the city with ideas that just make sense — annexation, development of St. Catherine Creek, etc.?
He’s like the Easter Bunny, always coming up with great things to see, eat and do.
And he doesn’t have any of that funny green plastic grass on him, either.
Kevin Cooper is publisher of The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached at 601-445-3539 or kevin.cooper@natchezdemocrat.com.
Comments
Posted by ntzmom (anonymous) on March 23, 2008 at 6:55 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Nice column Kevin, I like the way you think on this one!
I wonder f Tony would ever run for Mayor again...it sure would help Natchez! And I bet he would be a shoe-in.
Posted by hitormiss (anonymous) on March 23, 2008 at 12:09 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Tony’s many years of service have proven invaluable to our city. Ask Tony about Mayor West’s involvement in getting the St. Catherine’s Creek project moving again. His answer may surprise those of you who continue to doubt West ability to lead.
Posted by NatchezEnema (anonymous) on March 23, 2008 at 1:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Annexation? Why don't you really call it what it is. It's a money grab. The city is broke and would love to have the taxes. This does not need to happen no more than letting a crack head have more crack! When your money gets tight, most smart people look at their budget and make changes or cut back. You can't borrow youself out of debt or go take someone's money. The city leaders are squirming because of the money woes around here and are starting to listen to the tax payers and take a good look at themselves and their spending. Out of control spending needs to be put in check first!, way before we do anything that puts more money in the city leaders around here. This is what happens when they get behind closed doors and talk about how they are going to pay for the hospital, pay for a money pit convention center, visitor center. GET MORE TAX MONEY, ANNEX,. Stop the bleeding first, I say. Shame on you Kevin, things like this got the messenger killed in the old days. Happy Easter Natchez, another way to get more of our money with a nice spin and smile! And no I am not going to kill you Kevin. I just wish you would have asked how much more tax money the city would get in this grab. Then this story would have revealed what was really up here!
Posted by genlee (anonymous) on March 23, 2008 at 2:35 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Great article Kevin. Keep driving this message home in your newspaper. We need B&B annexation. It is the RIGHT thing to do. These people use the city streets and services just as much as those who reside in the current city limits. Total consolidation really makes sense, but the B&B annexation is a good start.
Posted by OldGrandDad (anonymous) on March 23, 2008 at 8:04 p.m. (Suggest removal)
One can only wonder why the city limits need to expand in cancer fashion while the population doesn't grow. If annexation is such a good idea, why are the people of Beau Pre and Boadmoor not asking for it? Its nothing more than a money grab to put even more money into the pockets of the mayor and aldermen. Its a BAD idea. And the consolidation idea is a looney one.
And for those still interested in killing a Mississippi creek and turning it into a Louisiana bayou (as if there is a shortage), please go down to the creek. Take a sample of water and carry it for testing. Lower St. Catherine carries raw sewage. Now who has the bright idea to impound this water inside the city limits for "recreation"?
Posted by straightshooter1 (anonymous) on March 24, 2008 at 8:39 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The people who chose to live in Broadmoor and Beau Pre did so because they didn't WANT to live in Natchez. They chose to live in the country so that they weren't regulated to death by a bunch of dumb politicians looking for more pockets to raid. They chose the country because they want to have horses and cows near their homes and maybe the occasional chicken or duck. Leave the folks alone and learn to manage your money a little more wisely. Natchez gets its benefits(taxes) from these people by the money they spend in the city limits for food, gas, drugs medical care and everything else you can think of.
Posted by destiny (anonymous) on March 24, 2008 at 8:52 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I've said it before and I'll say it again. Tony would be the best bet to pull the economy up in Natchez. I asked him several years ago if he would throw his hat in to do just that. His reply was, he could not handle the divisional margin in Natchez. I cleaned the answer up a bit but I'm sure you know what he meant.
Good article Kevin, but I think the smart thing to do is wait until after election time to make any more plans for Natchez. Election time is just around the corner and I'm almost sure the citizens will think long and hard before going to the polls this time. We do need a change, but one for the better. Have we learned yet? I pray we have.
Posted by OldGrandDad (anonymous) on March 24, 2008 at 7:59 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Kevin, during Tony's administration, there was a garbage dump on the hill above the highway just coming off the bridge. The first thing visitors to Mississippi saw was a "welcome to Mississippi" sign. The 2nd thing they saw was a garbage dump. The major problems facing Natchez have been with us before, during and since Tony's administration. Looking backward will only give us more of the same.
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