CITIZENS LEARN GOAL UPDATES

By Larry Fugate/OF THE COMMERCIAL STAFF

Pine Bluff and Jefferson County will realize their full potential if residents work together to meet common goals, participants were told Tuesday evening during a town hall meeting here.

The meeting at the Pine Bluff Convention Center was designed to update residents on steps taken since the initial Pine Bluff 20/20 Visioning sessions were held last year.

The visioning process is vital, Mayor Carl A. Redus Jr., told the crowd, to realize the “community that you want and the community you deserve.”

Twelve priority goals were developed during a series of town hall meetings in 2007, with 38 additional community goals identified.

Lou Ann Nisbett, president and chief executive officer of The Economic Development Alliance of Jefferson County, discussed the top goal — job creation and preparedness — as it related to a recent meeting with Gov. Mike Beebe.

“The world of economic development is changing, not only for the state, but every community in Arkansas,” Beebe wrote in a July 8 letter to Nisbett. “Our approach to recruiting new companies and helping our existing industries expand is now through a partnership between the state and our communities.”

Cities like Conway, Fort Smith and Arkadelphia are creating jobs through economic development monies generated locally, she added, without specifically mentioning a proposed one-half cent sales tax here to fund economic development and workforce training.

“A community that is aggressive in developing its economy, plans for it, devotes resources to it, and works to partner with the Arkansas Economic Development Commission in offering customized incentives needed to close the deal, realizes much more success,” Beebe added in the letter. “With every request the AEDC receives, the first question asked is, ‘What has the community committed to the project?’ The goal is a partnership. ...

“It’s a challenging goal, but one worth pursuing, and the payoff is vibrant, strong communities,” Beebe concluded.

The team working on a proposed multi-purpose center to anchor public recreational facilities for youth, seniors, and all segments in Pine Bluff and Jefferson County in a centralized location has visited a number of similar facilities in the state, according to Leslie Peters, a goal captain working on the project, the second on the list.

He said the goal team hopes to narrow down the list of potential sites in the near future, then address costs.

Pine Bluff police are making progress on the third goal — reducing crime by 8 percent — during 2008, Lt. Bob Rawlinson said. He said the department is using selective enforcement efforts known as Zero Tolerance in neighborhood “hot spots” with high crime rates.

Beefed up recruiting and bike patrols provide a greater police presence, Rawlinson added, then noted that while 12 new officers have been added to the force, seven left the department during the same period.

Crime was down 4.8 percent during the first six months of 2008 compared to the same period last year, and overall is down 8.72 percent during the past 12 months, the officer said.

Deputy Fire Chief Skipper Hipp said firefighters are taking a proactive stance in addressing the fourth goal on the list, maintaining and/or improving the city’s fire insurance rating to Class 3 by the end of the year and improve the ISO rating to Class 2 by the end of 2012.

Other goals have met with some success, goal team captains said, from improving student achievement by setting higher expectations to transportation and safer streets.

Volunteers are always needed, said R.J. Lightsey and Judi Norton, co-chairs of the 20/20 Implementation Committee, to work on projects to improve the city and county.