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Thoughts on the events center proposal for Benton
Letter from: Mack McManus, Benton
Posted March 11, 2011
I was caught off guard when asked if I had anything to say at the latest town hall meeting sponsored by the Benton Advertising and Promotion Commission. Of course I had some thoughts about the issues at hand, specifically the community center issue, but had not planned to say anything because I had made a commitment that I had said my last regarding this dilemma. I suppose I could have said that I did not have anything to add to the meeting; but being who and what I am, I fully fit into Shakespeare’s words when he said " ... and above all else, to thine own self be true."My comments were not thought out and were disjointed. I have had time to munch on what I really think. I wish that I had stayed for the entire meeting, but I could not sit still and listen to the speaker that followed me. The longer I sat, the madder I got, and that is not good for anyone.If you will indulge me, I have some better thought out comments.First and foremost, even though we have a representative type of government that has placed its trust in each of you aldermen for your respective wards, I do not think that you vote the will of the people. If you did, this issue of the fairplex project that is now disguised as an events center would not be on the table. The public spoke clearly that they do not want their money spent on a disguised fairplex. I am afraid that the City Council (with due respect) is a coward to place this issue on the ballot (for fear of defeat). That places you (council) in a dilemma. How do you give up $800,000 of guaranteed revenue that can be used for worthwhile projects that truly support advertising and promotion? That is a hard call. So hard that it should not be placed in the hands of 10 aldermen.The street talk is that the council is divided five to five on the issue of continuation of the (1.5 percent) hospitality tax (sounds like an oxymoron). Well, that places the mayor (David Mattingly) in a precarious situation very early in his administration. This mayor is not afraid of facing that kind of issue should it be simply a business decision. It is not that; it is a political decision, and that places him right in the middle of it with having to possibly break a tie vote and potentially make a multimillion dollar decision.We have placed decisions involving much less money in the hands of the public. Why should they not have a hand in this? Of course the fact that it is their money shouldn’t have anything to do with it, according to some. Well, as Oliver North said of the public, "They have the right to be wrong." Do you have the right to take that decision away from them?Should you ignore good judgment and choose not to let the public have a hand in the decision of whether to continue the tax that they pay (remember the 60 percent that was thrown up on the board that the local public pays) and decide to build the fairplex. Please consider the following:Walmart, one of the finest run companies in America, has made the decision that they will not build new supercenters unless they have highway visibility. That is good business. Yes, they pay a premium for some of that property, but it pays in the long run. It is a great marketing tool.We need to adopt that same philosophy and place this events center on the Interstate with pristine visibility. Yes, the property might be expensive, but as I said about New Boston, Texas, they made the same decision that I am suggesting and look what they did with it. Passersby have an image of New Boston that it must be a pretty nice town. That could help take away the "car lots and Brown’s Country Restaurant" image as you pass through Benton.If this edifice is the ultimate decision that is reached, make it so it has the image of those churches you see as you go to McCain Mall. Wow, do you get a good feeling about that church? They look prosperous and it makes you want to go inside and see what that building is like.For goodness sakes, don’t build this facility behind Holland Chapel Baptist Church and hope that people will see it in the distance and stop at the Capri Motel to visit our city. Just won’t happen.You are naive to think that an events center is going to draw people to Benton. It might help keep people here, but it is not going to draw people here. We don’t have anything that would draw people here. One of the issues that would keep people from coming to a major event is the fact that our county is damp. We are not dry and we are not wet. We are damp. A center of this nature to be a draw needs to be in a wet county.I don’t believe that our youngsters and their families will ever give up the idea of graduation in Benton when they can graduate in the Stephens Center. Would you? For some reason, they have this Little Rock mentality that makes them feel that going to Little Rock is better. This facility will not compete favorably with the Stephens Center. Surely you don’t think the Bryant student body will come to Benton’s events center to have the Hornets' graduation, do you? That is completely absurd. Major music events are not going to come here because of the aforementioned concession.There was a comment made that those going north would stop here. Not so fast. There are two motels on that side of the highway with one-way service roads. These people are going to go on to Bryant and Little Rock, where there are much nicer motels and a myriad of restaurants in Bryant.Having said that, what do you think that this facility will be used for? The Benton Area Chamber of Commerce banquet, BAMM (Benton Athletic Memorial Museum) banquet, Cajun Feast or the Ducks Unlimited banquet -- all annual events? I simply do not have the vision that shows me that it will be gainfully employed even if you don’t have metal chairs that are good for about two hours, according to one speaker.I wish I had had the opportunity to put these thoughts together (prior to the town hall meeting), but I was sort of called on to make comments.All local. Very affordable. Highly visible. We're the ideal complement to your advertising needs.
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