Don’t miss opportunity

The struggle over control of a building on the south side of Monroe should be the catalyst for progress.

The building on Arizona Avenue was intended to provide incubator space for the Southside Economic Development District. In the last two weeks, a power struggle has played itself out.

The building had been the subject of a fallout between the SEDD, city of Monroe and former SEDD commissioner Ray Jones Jr. The city committed $100,000 in economic development funds to assist SEDD in developing the incubator. Some $76,000 of that was used to purchase the building.

Jones, who was chairman of the SEDD Board of Commissioners, changed the locks to the building and claimed he was operating it under another corporation, Southside Economic Development District Inc.

That corporation, which was established in 2002, is meant to be the nonprofit arm to the SEDD so that the commissioners can accept donations to help fund economic development projects in the district. Not only did Jones lock out the commissioners, he changed the board of directors for the corporation, which is meant to reflect the commissioners of the district. He did so without authorization from the SEDD.

The other commissioners removed Jones from the SEDD on Tuesday. A new chairman, Augusta Turner, was elected. And they are working with the Secretary of State’s Office to correct the articles of incorporation to show the correct board of directors.

On Thursday, with the assistance of the Monroe Police Department and Jack’s Lock Shop, the SEDD reclaimed ownership to its headquarters as the locksmith changed the locks and turned the keys over to Turner.

The city and the SEDD moved quickly to resolve the standoff. Well done.

The building, we believe, is still a substandard piece of property. The city is committed to getting the building in proper working order, including paving the parking lot, doing culverts and changing the orientation of the building to the Arizona Drive side.

Still, the events of the past two weeks have given the SEDD visibility it’s been missing in the community. Good can come from it.

The first job is to repair the reputation of the SEDD. The community knows the SEDD commissioners were wronged. The board should take this opportunity to emphasize the great needs of the south side of Monroe and show it has the right intentions by putting a plan in place for developing the incubator.

Then the board must proceed to execute the plan and have some early successes. That will beget more success. The messiness of the past two weeks is over. Move on.

The editorials in this column represent the opinions of The News-Star’s editorial board, composed of General Manager and Executive Editor Kathy Spurlock, Engagement and Community Content Editor Hope Young, Watchdog and Storytelling Coach Mark Henderson and Business and Politics Reporter Greg Hilburn.