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Bryant 20/20 meetings end soon |
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Tuesday, 19 August 2008 |
Two town hall events remain
Anyone interested in the future of Bryant still has time to offer opinions, but not much time is left.
The last two Bryant 20/20 public forums are scheduled for today and Thursday.
“We want to know what you want Bryant to be or look like,” state Sen. Shane Broadway, D-Bryant, said.
“Ten years from now, what do you want to have, or not have, for that matter? We are gathering in these meetings to do brainstorming. We want to look at where we are, and later, decide where we want to go.”
“Bryant 20/20: A Clear Vision for Bryant’s Future” is the theme of the forums.
One forum will be held at 7:30 p.m. today at Bethel Middle School, 5415 North Lake Road. The final meeting will start at 6 p.m. Thursday at the city’s police and fire training facility at 312 Roya Lane.
“We are asking anyone with any stake in Bryant — whether they live here, work here or have children going to school here — to attend,” said Rae Ann Fields, Bryant Area Chamber of Commerce executive director.
Jim Garland, chairman of the chamber’s Civic and Government Affairs Committee, is coordinating the events. He said that the forums are not exclusive to Bryant residents.
“Whatever connection anyone has to Bryant needs to be here,” Garland said.
“People need to come and give good ideas for Bryant’s future. All we need is people’s presence, participation and good ideas. There is no preparation for this, no preregistration, no cost, and there is no requirement of any kind. It’s simple.”
Fields said the city has had two previous forums, in 1999 and 2000. She said those meetings were successful enough to prompt city leaders to hold more.
Previous forums resulted in the formation of the Bryant Youth Association, which later became the Boys and Girls Club of Bryant, and the installation of a ramp onto Interstate 30 at the Springhill Road crossover.
“We originally conducted the forums because it was required” by the Arkansas Department of Economic Development, Fields said. “We decided to repeat it because it works.”
The purpose of the meetings is to look at the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for the city. Fields said the sessions are not intended to serve as a forum for outlining complaints, pointing fingers or placing blame.
Participants are divided into groups and asked to list thoughts and ideas on the city’s future. The lists are collected for examination at the end of each meeting. From there, Fields said city leaders will make sure all age groups are represented.
“The last time we did this, we noted that no young people came to the events and we were missing their voices,” Fields said.
“So, we arranged to go to the schools and do the same planning as an exercise in some of the classes. We could consider doing something like that again. It doesn’t just end with the meetings and it probably won’t end for long time.”
Fields said information will be posted at www.bryant-ar.com at a later date. Then, she said, city leaders will hopefully implement many, if not all, of the ideas in the near future.
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