Got 25-grand you can spare?
That seems to be the question Mayor Mark Funkhouser is the Northeast to pony up before be debuts his new economic utility belt that will include tax diversion programs and other incentives to developers.
We are all for giving praise and howling at those who want to help out Northeast and get redevelopment on track for this area. But asking area businesses and even the neighborhoods to pony up so the Mayor can enjoy a catered event while doing so just seems tacky.
When did residents and business owners have to start paying for the Mayor’s PR?
But Funkhouser seems to waging quite a publicity war already from downtown as he is trying to garner favor once again with residents and council members as some of his programs get shuffled.
What ever happen to that graffiti abatement program Northeast was promised so many months ago? It was an initiative straight from the Mayor’s office that seems to have stalled as taggers and other punks continue to blight the neighborhoods.
We do not doubt that getting the mayor to the neighborhoods to see some of the real issues and problems residents face everyday will be a good thing, but we don’t need to throw Funkhouser a $25,000 party to celebrate his arrival.
Maybe that money could go toward cutting the grass in some of the abandoned homes along St. John?
Saturday night could not have been a more perfect night for an outdoor movie. Kudos and many tail wags to the folks of Indian Mound Neighborhood Association, the Mattie Rhodes Center and the Parks and Recreation Department for hosting a great family event that saw several dozen families sprawled out on blankets and in lawn chairs enjoying FInding Nemo.
In the coming weeks, Budd Park will once again host more movies and family nights as Happy Feet and Monsters Inc. make their way to the big inflatable screen near the shelter house.
