Council’s decision disappoints GSU

I was disappointed to learn from an article in the Ruston Daily Leader on July 21 (Councilman: Street closure would worsen Grambling problems) that the Grambling City Council had rejected, once again, Grambling State University’s request to close the campus section of Main Street.

Over the last several years, we have made several requests, only to be rebuffed each time. Just over a year ago, the council called a town meeting to solicit the views of the citizens on the matter, implying that they would be guided by the citizens. A vote was taken at the meeting and the citizens present voted in favor of the closing. The result of the vote was never made public, and the council denied our request once again.

Just recently, I asked my executive assistant, Michael McKinley, to reach out to the city council one more time. He spoke with Mayor Pro Tem Ed Jones and Council member Rev. Roosevelt Bryant and reported that both gentlemen expressed that the matter could be worked out. After that, I had a chance meeting with Mr. Jones in the post office. Our conversation was very cordial. We agreed that the city and the university needed to work together. I mentioned a couple of potential projects. Mr. Jones indicated that he was looking forward to the meeting with my executive assistant and said he thought we could work the matter out.

That meeting, as agreed upon by Mr. Jones, was scheduled to be held in my conference room. The meeting was postponed three times by Mr. Jones and was finally held at City Hall. In attendance were Mr. McKinley, Mayor Martha Andrus, council members Bryant and Toby Bryan and Mr. Calvin Wortham. Mayor Pro Tem Jones, after setting the meeting, did not attend.

In Mr. McKinley’s view, the meeting went well. He thought all participants were positive, agreeing to work together, except Mr. Bryan, who seemed opposed. The city officials agreed to put the matter before the full council. On Monday, July 20, they met and unanimously rejected our request.

The concerns expressed by Mr. Bryan to the reporter had already been addressed on more than one occasion. His concerns are unfounded and without merit.

The city chief of police’s concern about the university’s budget cuts is misplaced and misdirected. He would do better to focus his attention on the fiscal challenges of the city. Security and safety remains among our highest priorities. Despite the budget reductions, we are increasing resources to our campus police, not reducing them. So we will not need increased support, or any support, from city police to patrol the campus section of Main Street. We will continue to provide security for the street and continue to clean and repair it.

As we have explained, over and over, if the campus section of Main Street were closed, emergency, police and delivery vehicles would have continued access. No permanent barriers are involved.

If there is an emergency on I-20 requiring a detour through Grambling, no problem. The main route would be RWE Jones Drive. Traffic could also detour around the east side of campus via College Avenue to also reach U.S. 80. Or vehicles traveling east could use M.L. King Jr. Avenue to travel parallel to I-20 toward Ruston. If travel through the campus on Main Street is required, the street would be available immediately.

Closing the street would provide greater safety for our campus and the city. We could increase deterrence significantly to those seeking access to the campus for illegal purposes. We would lower the risks associated with vehicular traffic interacting with high density pedestrian traffic. We could maximize our efforts to beautify the historic quad and the east campus.

There is no rational reason for the city council to deny our request. Several surveys have confirmed that almost no local citizens use the campus section of Main Street, for good reason. It is nearly impassable during the school year.

Five years of opportunity for the city and campus to work cooperatively have been squandered. Projects that could have been completed by now may never happen. Potential opportunities which presently exist will remain unexplored.

We believe that we can never maximize the quality of the living and learning environment for students and faculty unless the quality of life in the city is also enhanced. We can never fully achieve our mission of service to the community without an effective partnership with the city. We know that the city will not be what it could be without partnering with the university. Unfortunately, that partnership continues to remain unavailable with city officials.

Effective and enlightened leaders always strive to achieve what is best for their constituents, those they serve. We should be working together in the best interests of our students and our citizens. All considerations should be devoid of individual personal agendas and petty motivations.

While we at the university remain open to cooperative endeavors with the city for the benefit of the Grambling community, the university will continue to move forward and work with other groups in the community to achieve our common goals for the common good.

Horace A. Judson, President
Grambling State University