Blytheville Mayor James Sanders is urging citizens to report vandalism in the local parks.
He noted vandals have unscrewed benches and thrown them, along with trash cans, in the Walker Park pond.
Some have cut baby swings and damaged other equipment at the parks, the mayor said during Thursday night's Parks and Recreation Committee meeting.
"This is not just something that hurts the city administration, but it also hurts our children," Sanders said. "They are taking away the needs of our children. The city is trying to provide a nice, pleasant place to go but then you have another element that tries to destroy those things."
"As citizens we have a responsibility and a duty to contact law enforcement when we see these things happening," he added, pointing out some of the vandals may not even live in Blytheville. "It's going to take all of us to make Blytheville better and cleaner."
Newly-appointed Delta Gateway Museum Commission member Angie Trotter said she has only been here a year and a half, but she does see a positive "change in path" for the city, despite the vandalism in the parks.
"As citizenship begins to take ownership, you will see the tide begin to change," Trotter said. "It's beginning already, but it's a long, uphill battle. From being outside and not in the government, I do see it beginning."
She noted Blytheville and Mississippi County rank among the highest in volunteerism in the state.
Trotter said cities can use volunteer hours for some grants, applying a dollar amount that they would have paid a local employment agency.
She agreed to keep track of local volunteerism hours, requesting organizations email their volunteer hours and the type of work, monthly, to afmtrotter@gmail.com. Trotter will plug them into a spread sheet and email the information to the proper places.
Councilman Stan Parks said former Main Street Blytheville director Matt Perkins was working on something similar before leaving.
New parks and recreation director Elroy Brown pointed out he plans to work on a volunteer program for the park, possibly getting churches to donate time to pick up litter in an effort similar to the Cleaner, Safer Blytheville campaign.
The city has already established a 6-person work crew to keep the parks mowed.
"My hat's off to Joe (Jacobs) and his crew," said Councilman John Musgaves, chairman of the Parks and Recreation Committee. "They're getting our parks the way they're supposed to look. This has been a long time coming. I thank the mayor for getting that crew together. That has been real positive."
The media-savvy Brown sees cleaning the parks as vital in promoting their use.
"If you want to promote the parks, you start by cleaning it up and making it desirable for people to be in the park," Brown said, noting that is first on the agenda.
"We've got some outstanding parks, they just need a little care," he added.
mbrasfield@blythevillecourier.com