The North End – what is it?
It is many things; it’s home for many families, families who have lived there for a lifetime. To them it has the feel of a favorite blanket, the one you reach for to keep you warm on a cold winter’s night. To those who do not live there it’s just another section of this city….an unattractive area that seems locked in a time warp and doomed to remain so. It’s fate is now in suspension, or so it seems – up in the air until just now – whereas through the decades it was just a drive through on your way in or out of town. As we all know, this isn’t the first attempt to pay lip-service to this decrepit set of structures, it’s been on the front burner before, only to have the flame sputter and then go out.
This neighborhood needs a hell of a lot more than just paint and mortar. It needs an IV rammed into its main artery…fresh blood ($$$) pumped into it’s heart. It needs a new broom, one that will sweep it clean of criminal activity. Why would any sensible investor pour money into this area then watch it run down the drain like the former Ally Katz bar did. What killed the Ally Cat? Gangs that moved in and took control; driving out anyone that did not conform to their mode of behavior….until that night the lights went out for good.
Before any heavy construction equipment rolls up, there needs to be a deep cleaning completed in the residential areas that serve as pseudo pharmacies for those who spend their lives in a suspended state of subconsciousness. There needs to be a joint effort between the courthouse and the police; you see the police cannot enter without a just cause….and all the just causes live at the courthouse. A few years ago I had a conversation with retired Chief of Police that asked for anonymity, which of course I granted. This retired Chief told me that up to that time there were 36 known drug houses operating in the city….all of which were operated by ex-NIACC ball players who never left town after their short stint at playing catch was over. These people were given deferred grading….deferred until the season was over because you had to maintain a certain grade point in order to play….hard to do when you can’t read or write.
Now the local college has competition for its graduating class of pharmacologists; that being the State of Iowa’s liberal welfare laws. These laws as compared to the neighboring state of Illinois has caused a migration swing comparable to the Gold Rush days. It filled every empty apartment in Northwood, Iowa and is starting to do the same here on our North End. These are no labors, these are pharmacologists that are open 24/7. If the council wants to develop this area, you can’t just sweep the street, you need to clean house……..
Peter Children of Mason City
The culture of neglect and anarchy has been allowed to proliferate because of Liberal’s with their over emotional thinking that they are going to save the world with government programs.
Give, give, give, then no fear, no shame, no guilt, no respect, and no one accepts blame for their behaviour. The courts and legal system is broken because of the laws we currently have on the books.
Misery is the only thing that changes behaviour.
LVS you are in a tight spot for sure!
LVS what part of town do you live in?? Also maybe the council could bulldoze part of the north end, put up a housing complex like a prison with fences and gates, put all the druggies and losers in there so the police can keep tabs on them. This complex will have to be pretty big ya know.. The council can appoint Russ Hardy to be the complex manager.
@fubar-we live in the North End. When we first moved here we had problems with some punk gangs but most of them ended up in jail. Then the neighborhood was very good for about ten years. Lots of young people with family’s and everyone knew everyone else and for the most part got along well. Then the bust happened and people lost their homes because they lost their jobs and the houses went at auction and the slum lords took over. Now we have thefts and drug deals all the time. You have to lock-
cont-every thing up and even then they break the locks. Anything left out over night will be gone the next morning. We know very few neighbors and don’t want to know very many. There are still good people here but we don’t see them much any more. We watch as they bring in car load after car load of sacks and come out empty except for a paper bag. We call the police almost every other day because one of them is violent and beats his girl friend. Then of course his pit bulls get out and scare…
cont.-us. Every night they are coming and going all night. They park a block away and walk there thinking no one will know. They are at the house less than 3 minutes and always go away with a bag of something. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to know what is going on. The guy has broken every door and every window in the house and has boarded them up or put blankets over them. It is a damn shame. It used to be a great place to raise a family.
You are correct Peter. If you want to see drug dealers and users in action just come and sit on my porch some night. We have talked to the police and they are “watching” them. Meanwhile people can not enjoy their homes. Stuff is stolen all the time. We watch them come in with sacks of stolen goods to trade. This all started to happen when people last their homes and the slum lords took over the neighborhood. We have some renters that are good family people and others that should be in jail.