Letter to the Editor: Keeping appearances

This letter will be running in Friday’s Sanford Herald, but I thought I’d put it on here first, since I completely agree with what it’s saying.
I’ll not print the letter writer’s name, as I have not told her the letter was going online just yet. Her name will appear with the letter Friday.

To the Editor:
Our city of Sanford has an ongoing need from years past that needs to be a priority today.
I am writing about the appearance of some older neighborhoods and business properties in our town.
While we have added some lovely subdivisions, a new hospital and city hall — along with new schools and renovations to downtown Sanford — our older areas have fallen into neglect and disrepair and are an eyesore for this city.
To be specific:
East Sanford has long needed many of the homes there to be repainted, repaired and relandscaped. The Kendale Shopping Center and surrounding businesses on Lee Avenue are rundown looking and the “battleship gray” paint is dreary and uninviting to shoppers and neighbors alike. The old Davenport warehouses on Third Street are still another example of poor upkeep.
One other area in need of improvement is the old McIver School building and some of the homes surrounding it. We cannot afford to exclude our older neighborhoods and businesses in favor of newer areas of this city.
We need the property owners of these businesses and homes to step up and have pride in our community and be good neighbors by making improvements to their properties. We should all understand that “slumlike” conditions of homes and businesses will and do attract undesirable activities and crime, which reflects on our town as a whole.
If we wish to attract new businesses and homeowners to Sanford, we need to present a clean attractive city in which to live and work.
We need to address code enforcement where applicable and look at new ordinances to be enforced where needed. We cannot continue to ignore this issue.

I’m a Rotarian

Today, I was officially welcomed into the Jonesboro Rotary Club in Sanford, North Carolina. My decision to join was based on a few things: I want to become more involved in this community and it’s a good way to get to know the people I work with on a regular basis.
I’ve told a few friends about this, and they’re under the understanding that Rotary is an Old Man’s club. It’s only half true. Yes, the average age of a Rotarian is about 60 (I’m 31), but this club is full of men and women whose ages span from early 30s and beyond.
I’ve also recently joined Communities in Schools as a board member and I’m about to help out our early Census program as the media guy. So if you have any involvement or want involvement in either of these programs, let me know. I’ll pretend I know what I’m doing.