What’s the State of the City for Turrell?

What’s the State of the City for Turrell?

Mayor Cooper offers a look at community’s plans, needs in 2018

news@theeveningtimes.com

Turrell Mayor Dorothy Cooper has made it her top goal for 2018 to remove the city’s old water tower before it collapses.

Cooper said in her final state of the city message that the old water tower is in bad shape.

One of the anchoring screws at the base of the tower is loose and she is concerned that the tower could topple.

“You’ve got to go tower,” Cooper said during a live video on Facebook. “I’m sorry. Yes, this tower is historic. But it needs to be taken down because if a good storm comes through here it’s going to knock that tower over.”

Cooper said the tower is not connected to the city’s water well and was condemned about ten years ago.

The city also does not have insurance on the tower, so if it did fall the city would be liable for damages.

“You don’t want that thing to fall, “Cooper said. “It is going to cause some terrible issues.”

Cooper said it will cost anywhere from $250,000 to $500,000 to take the tower down — money that the city doesn’t have to spend.

“We don’t have $500,000,” Cooper said.

“It’s $250,000 just for insurance for one person to get up there. You would have to have a big tent to sandblast all that rust off not just on the outside but on the inside because it would be hazardous to the community.”

Cooper said a new water tower will cost about $2.5 million.

She had been going to Little Rock to make the rounds in the state capitol to talk to legislators and various state agencies looking for financial assistance to help the city take the tower down, but had to stop after the city council stopped paying her travel reimbursement expenses.

“I’m working on that to see if we can get this to come to pass,” Cooper said. “I’ve been pleading and begging in Little Rock but I haven’t been able to go as much because I’m not being paid travel reimbursement. So it’s kind of hard for me to go out and seek like I was. And I was going a lot because Turrell has a lot of issues going on. You cannot sit in your office as mayor and make phone calls and people will come and help you. It’s not going to happen. You have got to get with the grantors and the powers that be in the upper offices, and you have really got to talk to them and let them know I have an issue here.”

Cooper said she hasn’t given up though and will continue to make it her number one priority in her last year as mayor.

“I am going to work real hard in 2018 to get that tower taken down,” Cooper said. “I love it. I’m sorry. I see a lot of people come in to town and take a picture of the tower because it is kind of symbolic of Turrell. But that tower has got to be taken down. It is very unsafe.”

Cooper said her second priority is to add flowers and shrubs to the city park, as well as a set of bleachers by the basketball court.

The park opened in August and features a children’s play area, pavilion, and basketball court. It was built using a $45,000 Facilities for Underdeveloped Neighborhoods (FUN) grant.

“I want to work hard on getting some plants out there,” Cooper said.

“That’s what makes a park a park other than the basketball court, pavilion, and that little play area for the children. You need to have some plants there.”

Cooper said she applied for a $58,000 grant to help finish the park but the city was not selected as a recipient. She plans to re-apply for the grant but also has a couple hundred dollars left over that she can use to help improve the park.

“I will keep doing what I can with what little funds I have to make the park look nice and neat for the community before I leave,” Cooper said.

In addition to the park, Turrell will also be getting a second round of street overlays.

Cooper said the city was approved for another $250,000 in state street aid.

“I filled out the application (last January) to get the rest of the streets completed and its been approved,” Cooper said. “We’ve still got some streets that need help and we will be working on that. It may not be this year. We just have to wait and see when they will be back in Turrell. All I know is I’ve done the application for a second round of funding to get the streets completed.”

Lastly, Cooper said she also hopes to do some work on the ditches this year to relieve flooding, particularly on Gum Street.

“We have a couple of ditches that floods bad when it rains,” Cooper said. “I felt so bad when it rained hard and there was water standing in yards. So I am also working on that.”

Cooper said she is trying to do as much as she possibly can for the city before her term as mayor ends on December 31, 2018.

She is running for the state Senate District 24 seat currently held by Keith Ingram, but assured residents that she will keep on working hard for Turrell.

“I’m going to be the mayor until my term is up.

But I am also going to be running for senator at the same time,” Cooper said. “I will give the same amount of work I am giving towards Turrell as the mayor because that’s what I was voted in to office — to be the mayor.”

Cooper thanked the residents for allowing her to serve as mayor and also thanked city workers for their hard work.

“I’ve enjoyed my term here — even through the ups and downs,” Cooper said. “I appreciate you all for allowing me to be your mayor.”

By Mark Randall