How come West Memphis keeps ….

How come West Memphis keeps on getting all this grant money and Marion never gets any? Don’t they apply for it? Or they never say if they get any. Keeping it a big secret. [Editor’s Note: Well, I can say with a bit of certainty that West Memphis does a far better job of promoting the city’s accolades and accomplishments than any other city in the county. They have a very strong PR department, very active social media presence and just seem to be more interested in communicating these sorts of things than Marion, Earle or any of the other communities in Crittenden County. I don’t think Marion or anyone else is trying to keep anything a “big secret” or anything. But also, I do think the other cities get at least some grant money, but the truth is that West Memphis is simply far more likely to get a lot more grant money. Why? Mostly because of the size of the city. Most sizable grants are earmarked a certain way to maximize the bene_t of the most people. A million-dollar parks grant, for example, is going to bene_t the 25,000 people who live and work in West Memphis more than the same money would bene_t the 12,000 people in Marion or the 3,000 people in Earle. Plus, many grants are tied to things like poverty levels, population thresholds and other demographic quali_ers that make West Memphis more likely to be eligible for grant money. And it is quite possible that West Memphis is simply more aggressive in applying for these grants, so you can’t knock the hustle…] I just wanted to sent a shout out to a couple of local restaurants. We were in town over the weekend and tried out two new places… or at least new to us. Stumpy’s BBQ and Venue. Both had excellent food and excellent service. The next time someone tells you there’s nowhere good to eat around here point them in the direction of either of those places. [Editor’s Note: Glad you had a couple of pleasant dining experiences. I have not been to Venue yet (I might need to start a GoFundMe for that one), but I do like Stumpy’s. My favorite part (aside from the food, of course) is the pro wrestling theme. You can actually sit there and watch whole episodes of classic WWF and WCW wrestling while enjoying your ribs. As for the whole “good to eat around here” part, I’ve been thinking of doing some kind of “Tastes of Crittenden County” thing in the paper where our readers can pick their favorites, like “Best Burger” or “Best Pizza” or whatever. Maybe even expand it to non-food categories like dentists, hair stylists or even teachers. Any interest there?]