I’ve been meaning to investigate this further but for now I’ll just give me first impression.

The Garnett high rise is a low income housing apartment building on the corner of 12th and Edgehill. It’s located right across the street from a larger public housing block on the other corner. I’ve been there a number of times for neighborhood meetings. There are real needs: dealing with and reducing crime, finding programs and activities for the youth to be involved in, and bringing retail business to the area. All of these things I have heard from the voices of people who have lived in the area.

As I’ve been going to these meetings and passing the building occasionally I noticed some work being done on the corner. About two weeks ago I finally saw what was being done. Someone somewhere in the city decided what this building and the people of this community really needed was two stark white polar bear statues throwing snowballs at one another. I guess they felt these statues where so important that the day they unveiled them I saw city vehicles out at 6am cleaning up trash, hosing down the area, and setting up cameras and lighting. It was so important to unveil these two statues that even the mayor came out and said a few words.

Now, I apologize for my cynicism, but this does not seem like the most pertinent need of the community. I could be very wrong, and maybe the artist was from the Garnett high rise. I’ll take a look further, but something tells me I won’t be surprised at the answers.

Does anyone else in Nashville see a problem here? I mean people in the community are speaking up and asking for the city to help with the crime and help build youth activities so the kids stay out of crime; and instead the city puts up two polar bears?!?

Something is not right here.