ALABAMA A&M and AUBURN UNIVERSITIES

Small-Town Mayors Seek Progress Under Shade Trees

AUBURN, NOV. 19---Stan Roark left his hometown decades ago, but the small-town values of Bahama, North Carolina, where he grew up, never left him.

Roark, who now works as an Extension agent in the small East Alabama town of Wedowee, remains a true believer in the merits of small-town life – a passion he believes is shared by others raised in small communities who have spent most of their adult lives in the "big city."

"So many people leave small towns, get a job, raise families and then return to these communities late in life after all of these challenges are behind them," Roark observes.

"I can very much identify with this," he adds. "My mother had eight sisters and two brothers who grew up in the same small town I did, but after spreading out as far as California and Maine, all but two of them eventually moved back. As it turned out, they preferred small-town life more than anything else they had tried."

Wedowee Mayor Tim Coe agrees, noting most of the growth in his town within the last few years has been from dispersed sons and daughters who returned after decades of living and working in places like Atlanta and Birmingham.

"People just don’t come to Wedowee out of the blue," Coe says. "They grew up in Wedowee or their spouses grew up here – or their granddaddy had a piece of land nearby. Whatever the case, I think we’re picking up a lot of people who are escaping Atlanta or some other big place."

As ever-increasing numbers of people escape the manic urbanization of places like Atlanta and Birmingham for the relative tranquility of rural localities such as Wedowee, it’s occurred to Coe and civic leaders in neighboring towns that small-town living has become a highly marketable commodity.

With this in mind, Coe, Roark and civic leaders from the neighboring Randolph County communities of Wadley, Roanoke and Woodland began identifying ways they could work together to build on this appeal.

Since small-town living most often conjures up images of lush green shade trees lining streets and adorning parks, Roark was convinced the first step should be a tree-planting project aimed at enhancing the natural beauty of the four towns. As an Extension agent responsible for environmental and community development, Roark believed such a project would be a highly effective way to attain both goals.

Roark enlisted the help of his son, Richard, a graduate student in landscape architecture at Auburn University.

After working with his son to draft a plan, Roark was able to secure a grant of $10,000 from the Urban Forestry Financial Assistance Program, an Extension-administered program aimed at helping communities better manage forestry resources.

By undertaking the project, the four Randolph County communities join hundreds of communities throughout the United States who have adopted similar plans in order to enhance their aesthetic appeal.

"Trees soften a city," says Roanoke Mayor Betty Ziglar, one of the mayors taking part in the project. "They take away from the hard look of concrete and make the city more beautiful and appealing."

Yet, as many experts contend, carefully maintained trees also speak volumes about the character of a community.

"I think an effective tree-planting program makes a statement about a town’s image – namely that its citizens care enough about it that they want it to look its best," says Dr. Brian LaHaie, Auburn University professor of landscape architecture who assisted Richard Roark with the 4-city plan.

It’s a view shared by Neil Letson, the Extension urban forestry specialist who administers the grant program.

"I think projects like these communicate a number of values, especially pride," Letson says. "In fact, I remember one of the elected officials from a small town telling me that he planted trees in order to convey the fact that his city remained a vibrant, growing place."

Tim Prince, whose top priority as Woodland mayor has been to improve his town’s appearance, couldn’t agree more.

"If I’m going to invite someone into my home for dinner, the first thing I do is clean off the table," Prince says. "Likewise, when I’m trying to attract outsiders into my community, I clean up the town and plant trees."

"To make a community attractive, I think it’s mandatory that when people come into your community, they see that it’s maintained and cared for," he adds. "It provides an environment for friendliness and adds a flavor to a town that say "welcome."

While tree planting is no panacea, experts contend a carefully managed tree program can help draw an outsider’s interest in considering other advantages offered by the community.

SOURCE: JIM LANGCUSTER, Extension Communications Specialist, Alabama Cooperative Extension System, (334)844-5686