Print this story | E-mail story | This story has 9 comments Add your own | iPod friendly
Pushing for all three will hurt Forks of the Road
Published Friday, December 14, 2007
Money, quality or time?
If you were to plan a building, which would you choose to control — the cost of the building, the quality of the building or how long it will take to build the building?
If you are a client — you want all three.
The reality is that you can only have two.
This was one of the first rules I learned in architecture school.
If you want a beautiful building in a short amount of time, expect to pay for it. But, if you want a cheap building built tomorrow, don’t expect it to be a masterpiece.
You can have two but not all three.
Unfortunately, the City of Natchez is looking for all three when it comes to a memorial and interpretive center for Forks of the Road slave market site.
Or at least that is the way it sounded Tuesday night during the public hearing concerning the site.
After the preliminary boundary study was presented Tuesday night and public comment was complete, Natchez Mayor Phillip West was invited to speak about the project.
When West talks about the Forks of the Road, he speaks with energy and spirit.
Listening to him discuss plans for a memorial or interpretive center at the site of one of the South’s largest slave markets, it is evident that the project is very important to the mayor.
In fact, West is so committed to the project that he does not want to wait for the project to wind its way through the halls of the U.S. Congress.
The project is too important to wait for the federal studies and congressional review that would be required before becoming a reality under the auspices of the National Park Service.
That was the message West brought to a handful of residents who came to the public hearing.
As an example West pointed to the William Johnson House. West mentioned lobbying in Washington, D.C., for the project in the early 1990s. Fifteen years later the project was dedicated and opened to the public as part of the Natchez Historical Park.
That is 15 years West says he and the city do not have to wait for the Forks of the Road project to become a reality.
Unfortunately, the city does not have the money to foot the bill for such a project. Instead, West says that he will get the money from other sources, including the state legislature, non-profit foundations and other sources.
What West didn’t mention Tuesday night is that the first efforts to preserve the William Johnson House were not by the National Park Service but by the Preservation Society of Ellicott Hill some 15 years before the house was donated to the city.
Those early days of the William Johnson House are not unlike the current situation with the Forks of the Road.
While the Preservation Society did many good things to preserve the William Johnson House, they did not have the resources to fully restore and maintain the historic property. Between 1975 and 1990, the society worked to raise money for its restoration.
But restoration did not happen until the project was given to National Park Service.
It is evident that West and the city have the best of intentions for the Forks of the Road project. It is an important project. But if the city is limited in its funding and has set an expedited timetable for the development, then the quality of the project may suffer. Or like the William Johnson House, the project may languish for 15 years, until it is finally given over to the National Park Service.
If the city is committed, as it should be, to building a lasting memorial to the Forks of the Road, it should learn from the lessons of the William Johnson House and give the project to the National Park Service now.
The William Johnson house is a stellar example of how the park service tells the story of Natchez.
It would be a shame if in the city’s efforts to control the time and money of the Forks of the Road project, the quality of this critical piece of Natchez’s story is compromised.
Ben Hillyer is the web editor of The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached at 601-445-3540 or ben.hillyer@natchezdemocrat.com.
Comments
Posted by natchez1 (anonymous) on December 14, 2007 at 1:11 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Good article Ben.
If the NPS does take over the Forks Site it will take years for the site to be developed, but when the site is complete it will be accurate, well researched with professional archeology.
The city of Natchez would struggle to even pay for the research let alone get the site development done. NNHP is one of the best run National Park sites in the country, Melrose and the William Johnson House are an incredible asset for Natchez. The Forks Site will help to give a complete interpretation of the Southern African American story. The completion of the Fort Rosalie Site will allow the Park service to complete the Natchez Story.
Mayor West is right to be passionate about this project. Let's hope he can use that passion to get the National Park Service to move forward with this project and use his Washington contacts to get the funding.
Posted by beammeupscotty (anonymous) on December 14, 2007 at 3:53 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Natchez has only one asset, time and they waste most of that.
Posted by shedevil (anonymous) on December 14, 2007 at 4:39 a.m. (Suggest removal)
how true scotty...all talk & no show
Posted by ConstantComment (anonymous) on December 14, 2007 at 6:30 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Developing Forks of the Road is important to not only Natchez but to our country. Responsibly adding that piece of our story will add more respectability to the living history tourists can experience here. Many more tourists will visit when it is ready for them to see. It will be a similar experience to going to D.C. to the WWII memorial and the Holocaust museum, which are hugely popular. But, this story is best told in Natchez. Book sales in recent years demonstrate huge interest in this greatest American story ever told. This project is much higher priority than William Johnson House was in earlier years and the timing is right. Work hard with National Park Service now and they will get input nationally and handle it appropriately. It will take lots less than 15 years but only if we demonstrate our willingness to support NPS as it works toward this goal.
Posted by JamesPreservationTrust (anonymous) on December 14, 2007 at 8:47 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Sounds like the issue is Federal control or local control.
A visit these days to Federally maintained parks in the West shows evidence of declining public services and reduced maintenance of parks and facilities. The explanation? No money.
You also can add: Out of sight - Out of mind.
Federal control will mean what it implies. The site will be maintained by a host of politicians from elsewhere, most of whom never visited Mississippi or care a twit about it. All they’ll be looking at is dollar numbers. And remember, their numbers come first. Really...where would a Mississippi historical site fall in the long list of priorities of those who run the Federal government?
Then, there’s the question of quality management ... or mismanagement. Looking at Washington these days, the quality of management or mismanagement appears to be in the eyes of the beholder.
If there was a problem with a property, wouldn’t you want a manager right here, on site? Someone you actually could touch, look in the eye, and address the issue with?
Can it really be said that throwing more money at something guarantees quality? With all the money Washington has invested in Bagdad, the place should have become the showplace of the world by now.
Local control definitely takes more effort. And it definitely takes more time. But it will definitely deliver better quality and more pride.
Historic preservation is about taking the time to get it done right for the benefit of those not yet born. The Forks of the Road has endured over 200 years. Taking some extra time and personal care will insure its quality. Otherwise, if the issues are only money, quality, or time, perhaps there’s a more looming issue to consider...Why not just turn over the rest of Natchez to Federal control?
Posted by roberth33 (anonymous) on December 14, 2007 at 10:39 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Federal Control--now that is a joke. Ol' Bushie has done away with any real federal government a while back with his own unconstitutional actions. Perhaps Philip can just call Bushie and get him to hand over some cash. It's a feasible as any other plan.
Posted by Morticia (anonymous) on December 14, 2007 at 8:16 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Bottom line - it doesn't matter if we want it or not because we don't have the money for it. The city is broke, the state is broke, the government is broke. America is broke and we are going to be a long time climbing out of this hole that Bush got us into.
Posted by beammeupscotty (anonymous) on December 14, 2007 at 8:21 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Let's call Jimmy Carter and see if he will build it for us.
Posted by rushinghjr (anonymous) on December 16, 2007 at 12:12 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I have a good idea! Why not let Jessie Jackson and his Rainbow Program and the blackmailing of private industry to promote so-called equality and Al Sharpton's Federal Taxpayer grants pay for this needed so-called history project! Thus the Natchez taxpayer will be off the hook!
Post a comment (Terms of Use Policy)
(Requires free registration.)