Arkansas Blog

they must have a city attorney, if they have one, like ours........Mister "I'd Have to Look That Up." Is it really allowed by the city's constitution or rules or whatever for the same person to serve as mayor AND city recorder/treasurer at the same time?

This is why I love to read the SW Times-Record. All along the border of AR/OK, starting with fort baptist, some town, usually a little one, is engaged in a vicious fight about firing the police chief or maybe high-ranking officer/rehiring him/taking away his pension just because he had sex in his cruiser with the po-lice dispatcher. yeah, so they were both on duty. do you people hafta nitpick everything?

It's like a plague visited upon the towns that line the AR/OK border, and it makes for very good reading. I mean, I wouldn't wish that upon anybody, but it's already happened, so I might as well enjoy reading about it. And the Times-Record has excellent (insane) Letters to the Editor and good obits. Found one not too long ago where, as God is my witness, some man was survived by the usual suspects and "his very special goldfish, Goldy*."

*Im afraid I forgot Mr Fish's name. Or Ms. Fish.

But overall it is a really good paper. I dont mean to poke fun at it - they can't help it if God has already provided that cool sex/firing/embezzlement material for them either. They didnt go out and DO it, they just got to write about it. And the editorials are written by real people, not repuglican robots. I let my subscription expire every 20 weeks or 16 weeks or so, and then I wait for the nice girl selling subscriptions trying to earn money for college - I was JUST about to give in and resubscribe when, like an angel, she showed up Saturday. Its surprising how much I miss it.

AND also, most importantly, with the exception of the obits, they have two full pages of almost all-good funnies. Also Dr. Gott and Dear Abby and some local writers and some silly syndicated ones, but you cant have it all. I can't read it till bedtime because for some evil reason I dont get paid for reading it (!!!!!!!) but it really is a good paper = still seems to maintain some integrity -- great coverage of local sports -- if you live in its delivery area, along the western wall of course, I highly recommend it.

the Moron News, on the other hand -- well, what do you expect from a newspaper that has a section for Walmart news? Toadies!

Well, Tina, in Smallsville The Moron News shines with its reporting of the in-fighting between Tontitown City Council and the Mayor. Presently they're having a veto contest. Council vetoes just
about anything the Mayor plans to do then the Mayor vetoes everything the Council does.

Hopefully, the inevitable shoot-out or brawl between the Mayor and Council will not occur on a
Friday afternoon nor any time on a Saturday or Sunday when The Moron News closes it up save for canned stories off the wire.

Lost and Found used to be a good, humorous read in Times-Record.

I thought Wrightsville was just a prison town.

Wrightsville just a prison town? Wishful thinking. Last time I looked, it was just a sad little town you had to go through to get to and from prison -- and most prison folks pass through it as fast as they can once they get away from the stop sign. Too bad, too, since it looks like it could be a nice little town if someone would clean it up. And yes, I mean that both ways.
Thing is, there are so many of those sad little towns down this way. Kids grow up and want to do more than watch the grass grow. They leave the homeplace to Mom and Pop until the old folks can't take care of it anymore -- can't even take care of themselves anymore. The old place starts falling down and it costs too much to fix it up. No one's gonna buy it anyway because the place next door looks like it's headed down the same path . . .
And so it goes.

As someone who is somewhat familiar with the past few years of Wrightsville's politic'n, the recent actions are somewhat expected. Ward never liked the previous mayor, Ms. Smith, and tried everyway she could to get rid of her. Ms. Smith and the city executive did a poor (read as no records) job of documentation of running the city. From bookkeeping, the local court, and running it's daily affairs, Wrightsville has never been a city of transparency. I harbor no ill will to Ms. Smith, it was easy money and had Ms. Ward not come along, no one would ever have found out.

Unfortunately, Ms. Ward is not a do-gooder with the noblest of intentions. She's annexation happy, wants to turn Wrightsville into a black version of Maumelle, and is very much into the same cronyism that her predecessor was known for. Did I mention that Ms. Ward is power hungry? Well, she has run against Ms. Smith in the past and lost, handily. Now that is not a problem, as Ms. Smith has removed herself. Now we are left with a microcosm of a banana republic in the making, with Ms. Ward declaring herself dictator at large of the small town. Yes, the bylaws of the city say that the recorder-treasurer assumes the role of mayor. The bylaws also state this is temporary, and gives the council options.

Ms. Ward, if your reading this, go annex that Polymarin plant out by the freeway. Charge hefty fees for construction permits to these outsiders. Ms. Ward's power hunger should serve as her undoing, as her brash, it's my-way-or-the-highway mentality is an immediate turn off to those who don't share her personal interests. Unfortunately, the betterment of the city she is now mayor (read dictator) of needs someone who can work with what they have currently in Wrightsville, and not pull in others in the surrounding area.

Sadly, the personal nature of the last few years is very evident in the past few council meetings. As things continue to evolve in this town, the rancor will only worsen until Ms. Ward and her allies change their tune, and meet reality.

One can be mayor and city clerk/treasurer at the same time? I gotta see that!

AN INVITE FROM THE INTERIM MAYOR OF WRIGHTSVILLE. . . Meet/interview with me.

I am not power hungry, but I do believe that the power of the City of Wrightsville should be returned to the citizens and council. Not the "Political Users" who have come into Wrightsville and orchestrated the "so called voice of the people" calling for a special election. Records show that Mrs. Smith has been ill advised by the "Political Users". She has been ushered into closed door meetings and encouraged to sign documents and transact financial business without council's knowledge or approval. Wrightsville's officials must be invited to those "meetings" and be encouraged to request and received all of the benefits of a duly qualified city to implement the services needed to protect the safety, health and wellfare of its residents and the surrounding communities.

If you will recall Mr. Brantley, I called you requesting an investigation of how the Legislative Audit falsified Wrightsville's 2007 audit. I have documented emails between the staff, the CPA and city officials. Now, we have to pay unprecedented legal fees to get an attorney that is willing to defend the city and assist with an investigation and independent audit.
I welcome an interview and help with revealing the real truth.

THE TRUTH MUST BE KNOWN - WE MAY NEED AN ELECTION, BUT . . .
It is not that I don't favor an election, the truth is I favor that which is best for the City of Wrightsville and will demonstrate the most efficient and effective use of Wrightsville's resources in a timely manner. And above all I favor informed decisions being made about Wrightsville with the Council members and citizens having full knowledge of the historical events that have led to the turmoil in Wrightsville today. Time is of the essence, and if the council can save time with an appointment, I suggest that the council and citizens of Wrightsville be presented with the credentials of those that will place their names on the ballot to be appointed immediately.

FOR THE RECORD

Mayor Smith is not corrupt, but those, "Political Users" who have advised her and worked closely with her over the past 20+ years are.

I do not dislike Mrs. Lorraine Smith, in fact, I admire, love and respect her, she was my high school teacher and my grandmother's (Ossie Barnes) cousin. I respected her enough, in 2006, to inform her of my intent to run for Mayor. At that time, she told me and several others that she was retiring, and she encouraged me to run, stating: "I like seeing my young people get involved in the process so that they can carry on". She was proud of my 20+ years of experience in real estate and business development, she asked me to help her, and appointed me to the planning commission wherein I later became Chairman. But, that was before the "Political Users" found out about me. They had sent their "Operatives", who didn't live in the area, to talk about running for Mayor. They later met with her and encouraged her to run (give another gallon of blood) for another term.

As Planning Commission Chairman, we presented a plan and budget to revisit the 1997 "Petitions for Annexation" along 145th Street to I-530, and north to include the first phase of the Higgins, Red Oak Sewer Facility (which is serviced by Wrightsville). We also discussed the benefits of a "Land Use Development Ordinance" for the planning jurisdiction, and for a strategic plan to be developed by UALR. But "Someone" advised her to abolish the Planning Commission, and move forward with annexation of less than half of the original area. Now as Interim Mayor, I have found that the Land Use Ordinance was adopted by the Planning Commission in 1989. But just like the petition for annexation, it was never brought before the council for approval.

On June 2nd the Council voted to adopt "Going Green" for the City of Wrightsville. I have also organized an "Enlightened Leadership Task Force" for the strategic planning, growth and development of the City. I am sure that all of those Executives reading this response are eager to partner with Wrightsville so that we may grow and implement energy saving policies that will positively impact the safety, health and welfare of the City of Wrightsville, and the surrounding communities within our 5-mile planning jurisdiction.

I remain dedicated to improving the Safety, Health and Economic Conditions of the City of Wrightsville.