BENTON H4RBOR AREA
Communi Y
y mice n
The dinner/meeting po ored by
the eighborhood Inform tion
Sharing E change (NlSE) nd th
Benton Harbor Area School to ve
individuals voice th ir opinion to
hy the chari Gray Recreation
Center hould be re-opened w well
ttended.
Over 200 people attended the
meeting at the Center, loc ted
behind Benton Harbor High School,
to voice their ideas to find ways to
re-open the Center for the youths of
Benton Harbor in hope of getting
them off the streets.
Repre ent tive from the
National Association of State Boards
of Education, from Alexandria Va.
attended the meeting on their Code
Blue Project
"We would like to help improve
the social, emotional and phy ical
health of the children of this
community, aid Virginia Roach,
director of the association's Center
on Thacbing and Learning.
Roach aid they were there to
listen and bear the concerns of the
citizens and they are working on
ways, trying to get the Charles Gray
Recreation Center open and
1lIIIDlDg.
JAMES RUTTER,
Superintendent of Benton Harbor
Area Schools aid Code Blue, a
health program for youth i one of
the programs needed at the Center.
The health program will address
such issues as pre-natal care for
teens, dental care, hygiene,
counseling and day care for students
with children.
"Effective education requires the
attention of physical, social and
emotional needs of our young
people," said Rutter.
He went on to say that, health
services requires education and
counseling services to address the
.attitudes and behavior of our youth.
And services must be organized
around children, and not children
organized around the services.
RllUer said research has shown
that children are most likely to be
bool ys m
ip, y
long
wanted old, beca the fi
are doing the job here the mal
�ed.
Many citiz spo, ling by
they thought the Center bauld be
re-opened. Some of the programs the
citizens stated they anted to t
the Center include ucb programs ;
ba etball, literacy progr ms,
vocational training, performing arts,
martial arts, music, CPR program,
theater/acting program, teen-age
pregnancy and wimming.
Some citizens tressed that if the
Center w re-opened, let it be open
in the evening and on week-en for
the youth. They also said they would
like to see transportation for the
youth to the Center and have the
Center staffed by citize in the
community and not outsiders.
Ricky Hill, one Of the speakers af
the meeting, spoke on "problems of
the community."
"When economics in the ci ty
went down, the first thing the
government did was eliminate
things for children," Hill said.
HE' SAID, IF the people don't
have money, how can they bring up
a family. He also aid the older
people are competing against the
children for 'minimum wage jobs"
which brings about a problem. "Lac
of recreation brings about a whole
slew of problems. "
Hill said that all the jobs and
recreation have been taken out of the
community and now the youth are
·killing and booting" one another at
a early stage and it d' twbs him.
He said basketball as a pat
Beer & Wine
Uquor
Packaged Meat
. Grocerie .
. Rib Shack & Party Store
BAR·B·Q RIBS & CHICKEN IS OUR SPECIALTY
. 268 E. EMPIRE
BENTON HARBOR, MI. 49022
(616) 925·6007
TAKE OUT SERVICE ONLY
MON.· SAT.
8a - 2a
SUNDAY
11a - 12 mid.
r
n
In CI Y
8ySER IC
1be Citizen for a Better Benton
arbor held a party on September
28, in Hall Par where there with
free fOod and m Ic,
Over 500 people were at th
g tbering from infants to enlor
citizens, both Bl c and white to just
it and talk ith ch other while
they listened to the music.
The eighborhood Inform lion
Sh ring E change (NISE) al 0
eized the opportunity to register
people to vote.
According to NISE Organizer
Charles Cobb, over 250 people were
registered.
Cobbs said the food was donated
by many different individuals and
som people j t stopped in j t to
volunteer their time to help.
Mee Party Store, Fair Avenue
donated the bread, Rev. Waltcr
Brown offered hi service by making
the potato sal d an4 bake.d beam and
Isaiah Sande donated m t of the
mea .
Not only w this event to register
voters, but to bring the people of
,
d
y
e of t e
'ty.
Hill ded," itb Chari
Oiay Recreation Cen r open it ill
to cbil4ten if
e don't do anything 11 0 yo
our problem' j t going to
t and r and greater.·
Eighteen year old ntoine
Echo ,who graduated in June from
Benton Harbor High School got a
tanding ovation from the udicnce
. for his commcn about the need of
recreation for the youth in the
community.
"You can't a program for
youth if you don't have the youth.
You can't be 50 years-old and say,
'well· I w young once', but you
have ver been young in 1991," he
. told the udience.
"We to break .down
tereotypes be eon the older peopl�
and the younger people and come
together," Echol said. ---------------
·PEOPLE MAKE statements
that we are a lost generation," he
. rofeniDg to a slalement made
'by yor William Wolf at the
meeting of the Mayoral Candidates
forum in August "If we are a lost
generation, you lost us," he said to
theadul .
He ended by saying, "I'm tited of
people in my age group being dead.
Let's not just have a drop-out
program, but let's have a drop-in
pr ram for tbe youth of tbe
COIIUDUDl' ly."
".' J e Child, P tor of
Progre ive Mi ionary Baptist
Church gave the audience ome
b tgroUDd on Charles Gray and his
name ake Center. He told the
audieJl(;C that it ing to take
e rybody, both old and young to
erve the problems in the
community.
Glen Yarbrough, head of the
City's Park and Recreation
summarized 'the meeting. "We had
facili ties here for the youth and
community people, but politics got
. olved, " he said.
"We ant this facility open, we
want to h ve some imput in what'
going on in this facility,· - if not
FOR VERIFIABLE I ATiON
ABOUT THE EVE L, DI TO
THE DROWNING DEATH OF
",t!a4 74- �EMPIRE
•
don't open it," Yarbrough said.
YARBROUGH SAID when he
was operating the recreation center,
he worked hand-in-hand with the
school system. "We have to educate
our youth in all facts of life.
Educa tion i recreation and
recreation is education."
Yarbrough said he bas employed
up to 250 youths during the summers
at the rec center. but this year he only
employed 20. "Let's open this
facility, but let' don't let it only be
a school, let it be whatever it's got to
be to serve our youth. "
Yarbrough conluded by saying,
money wasn't the problem because
there have been thousands of dollars
put into the Center, but it wasn't used
right "Money doesn't excite us," he
said, because "if it' IlOt used right,
we'll be right back in the ituation we
are right now."
"I think the meeting went quite
well," said Jim Bogden, Project
Associate, of the National
A ociation of State Boards of
Education. He said they are.going to
do all they can to help get funds to
. re-open the Center.
He . d all that w beard will be
taken back to the association. He
added that the association didn't
provide funds, but they will put
together some grant applications and
ubmit them in behalf of the school
�ystcm.
. I
DURING THE DDA meeting,
Chairman Brooks informed the
board members of the R.F.P. Status
(Request for Proposals) of DDA. He
said the executive committee. had
submitted R.F.P.s to various consult­
ants trying to update the master plan
ofDDA.
Brooks aid an eight member task
force was formed with two members
from the Benton Harbor Planning . IN OTHER BUSINESS, Chair­
Commission, two members from the man Brooks told the Board that the
DDA Board, two members from Executive Committee met and got
Benton Harbor NOW, and two mem- together preliminary job description
bers from the Cornerstone Alliance. forthcdirector'spo ition.TheBoard
Hesaidatthistimetherehasbeenno is in search of a director for
decision with the City's consultant. . DDA/TlFA since Aaron Anthony
"I felt that the project bad taken a the last director left the first of Scp­
different lant then I originally tember to start a new job as the city
wanted to sec, " Brooks said. And the manager for the City of Allegan.
original plan that the board was He said the committee will be
trying to accomplish was to combine meeting again and at their October
the eries of reports and studies that Board meeting tbe committee will
was done in Benton Harbor for the present to the Board � job description
1 t five years and come up with in- for the director and the members will
formation on a street by street basi have a chance to make recommends-
far what treets needed total tion and changes in the job descrip-
infrastructures, which streets needed lion if they like. .
paving, which streets needed park-. During the TIFA meeting, ibe
ing lots, etc. TIFA Board voted to:
Brooks said the majority of the - Award a paving bid to Quality
consultants did not addres those is- Paving Company, Coloma, ._
Michigan for the amount, of ,
$5,076.00 for pa\dng, repair/replace
topsoil & seed at the rear of the Busi-
nes Oro th Center .
- Award the installatioll of a
level loading door, loading dock and
retainin wall at the rear of the Busi­
nes Orowth Center, to Hollman &. •
Hollman Construction, Benton Har- •
bor, for n amount of $7,665.52 pI us
$664.00 (alternate overhead door)
for a total of $8,329.52.
- Enter into a three month lease •
agreement with· Janser lne., of Ber­
rien Springs, a Carpet Installation
Company, for $150 per month, •
beginning October. =
Benton arbor together. I didn't
realize ho many people we ve in
Benton Hamor that d our b lp,
but to m of the children in
par not only the children but the
dul too, ho need help a
di heartening.
All the people ted patiendy in
line to be rved.
do not ve enough "Soup
Kitchens· in our city to feed the
hungry. The citizens that can and are
ble need to come together and do
ome,thing about our people. We
can't it b c and P ielent
I
A,
· di
.
·
• • j
....
; .
I
. ,
.. '
· ,
h to help beca
it from
We citizc 0 Benton
need to tand up and be coun
do something to help our dly
people, both Black and bite.
Thanks to God, there enough
food for all the people.
Cobbs said hopefully thl will be
an annually event.
ar
By BERNICE BROWN
The City of Benton Harbor's
Downtown Development Authority .
(DDA) and the City' Tax Increment
Finance Authori ty (TIF A) learned at
their September 17, meeting that
they will be receiving mon,ey back
from a law suit filed by Alex Little,
a former director of DDA{I1FA.
Chairman Christopher Brooks
id Uttle had filed a suit against the
DDA/TIFA Boards and the City of
Benton Harbor for wrongful dis­
charge him from his duties with the
board and the Board filed a
counter- uit gainst Uttle.
Brooks said both suits were dis­
missed. He said the Boards were
bonded for $10,000 each with. the
Signal Property and Casual Com­
pany and the Insurance Company of
North America. DDA will receive
$9,957.65 and TIFA will receive
$10,000.
Brooks said the City's Attorney'
Scott Smith informed htm that the
money will go to the Boards, but the
city might want to claim some of the
money to offset some of the legal
fee .
,
AUTY
ALON
f • .,
271 E. eMPIRE (CORNER OF BROADWAY). BENTON HARBOR
.1
sues, but addressed more i ucs on
what trees, lamp posts, park benches
and wate bake were going to be
on Main Street. "They were looking
toward a pretty picture of what Ben­
ton Harbor was going to look like."
He said most 0 proposals cost
in the $20,000 range he felt that
the DDA board didn want to invest
tbat much money on the project.
"My recommendation at thi
time, since the task force not
been reconvened to make a decision,
is to retain the force and revise
and go out for new proposals based
on a more capital inprovement plan,"
Brooks said. He also tated that
Roland Klochbw, the City's en­
gineer, said the project can be done
for leas than S2O,000.
Brooks said he will bring to the
board at their nut meeting new
proposals for the board to revie. . :.