A good place ...
The Issue: Leaders look at Louisville attributes. Our View: Evansville area has much to recommend it.
A group of civic and government leaders from here visited with leaders
in Louisville last week and came away with the impression that they are
a people who love their Kentucky city.
That view was articulated by Vanderburgh County Council member
Marsha Abell, who was among the Evansville visitors to Louisville. She
said, "These people really love their city. We need to love Evansville
the same way. We need to realize the things our city has to offer and
appreciate them."
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And Evansville Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel, another Louisville
visitor, said that among the efforts he heard about there was one to
identify the things that make a community special.
Those are grand ideas, ones we revisit here every few years, just to
remind ourselves that despite our problems and issues - typical of any
city - Evansville has much to commend it to residents and visitors
alike.
We last did this in 2003, when we borrowed a phrase from then-Vision
2000 director Ken Robinson, who said that the city needed to create a
"collective vision."
It still applies today. As we said, we have problems, and we have
our differences. More days than not, we talk about those problems and
differences in this space; after all, we can't deal with problems if we
don't talk about them. We will continue to do that, but for this day,
let's look at some of the things that make Evansville, Vanderburgh
County and the region a place that people love.
Visually, when we think of Evansville and its identifying qualities,
we always go to the riverfront and the scenic bend in the Ohio River.
Few cities can boast of a prettier place to stroll, jog, bicycle or
just sit and watch the sunset. The transformation of the riverfront
into a modern, beautiful area for commerce, entertainment and leisure
is a credit to the city, its business community and local residents.
Vectren, Old National and American General, Casino Aztar, the soon to
be expanded Evansville Museum, the Pigeon Creek Greenway, the nearby
First Street historic neighborhood, and not far away, LST 325 combine
for a district that most cities of similar size would envy.
We have a wealth of natural beauty in this area. Consider this list:
Wesselman Park Woods Nature Preserve, Pigeon Creek, John James Audubon
State Park, Howell Wetlands, Blue Grass Fish and Wildlife Area,
Burdette Park, Angel Mounds Historic Site and Mesker Park Zoo &
Botanic Gardens, with its soon to be opened, exciting Amazonia exhibit.
How many communities of this size can boast of Indiana's
fastest-growing state university, an established private university
with a campus in England, a branch of the Indiana University School of
Medicine, a top-notch technical/community college and a brand-new
technical high school?
We have a public school system that recognizes that it must adopt
programs that successfully reach all of its students. One of our
charter schools is rated as one of the 100 best high schools in
America. And we have quality private and parochial schools.
We have not one but two large hospitals, and a host of specialty medical clinics.
We have the Koch Family Children's Museum, the Evansville African
American Museum and a new Central Library We have The Centre and The
Victory, and a large arena, one that may soon be replaced. We have
Swonder Ice Arena. We have Bosse Field and the Otters. We have the
historic old Reitz Bowl, a terrific place to watch championship high
school football. Ellis Park in Kentucky is closer than most points in
Indiana. We have Thunder on the Ohio and the Freedom Festival in the
summer, followed by the Frog Follies, and then in the fall, the West
Side Nut Club Fall Festival. We have a first-class philharmonic
orchestra.
Visitors who come to our city by air are greeted at a modern air
terminal building, one appropriate for a city of this size; it gives a
positive first impression of Evansville. An interstate highway connects
us with points east and west as far as one can drive, and eventually a
north-south interstate will connect us with Canada and Mexico.
It's a good place to live. The crime rate is low, and the taxes, as
difficult as they are for some people, are lower here than in many
other parts of the country. Our parks are getting better, and will soon
have some new swimming pools. Youth sports are big, and the facilities
continue to improve.
As for the people here, they have a strong work ethic and a
religious heritage, and they are a charitable lot, fully willing to
give of themselves in times of need.
There's a lot more good to say about our people and our community;
this was pretty much a list off the top of our heads, and we're certain
we missed more than a few attributes.
If we missed some features that you think make Evansville a special
place - a community to love - let us know. The new Sunday Soapbox
announced on the Viewpoint page today invites just such views from
readers.
Tell us what you think about your city and the surrounding community.
http://www.courierpress.com/news/2008/may/28/a-good-place-the-issue-leaders-look-at-our-view/
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