January 9, 2013

Once again the Benton Circle was decimated over the weekend by an errant driver traveling at a high rate of speed. And of course, they sailed right through the new fence installed by crews less than 30 days ago, leaving a debris trail that stretches across the circle, the street and into the trees on the west side of Gladstone Boulevard. The most recent repair was due to an errant moron, who early in 2012 decided they would do some DIY landscape work to the circle late one night, obviously after copious quantities of cerveza.

By the looks of the damage, the driver of last Saturday’s vehicle got a trip to the hospital as well as their car being towed to the impound lot – or what was left of their car after traveling over a couple 12-inch curbs and through two sets of solid iron bars one-inch thick.

This newshound asks – is it any wonder City Hall isn’t lining up the capital improvements for Northeast given what happens to those projects at the hands of a few idiotic (and in this case intoxicated) bad apples? Neighborhood associations and scores of volunteers continue to fight the good fight – and for good reason. There’s still a ton of good things going on in this community. But with the startling frequency of major vandalism hits like this, it gets tougher by the minute to salvage the good.  This newshound is most fatigued by these events. Here’s hoping the neighborhood organization will stay on the Parks Department in prosecuting the perp to the fullest extent of the law. Well, for what THAT’s worth in Jackson County anyway.