Dunkirk did some dreaming

Twenty-five years ago this week, one of Jay County’s municipalities was doing soul-searching and some dreaming.

With Indiana Rural Development Council and city officials leading the way, a group gathered in Dunkirk on Oct. 2 and 3, 2000, for a tour of the city and small-group discussions about housing, civic organization, city boards, downtown revitalization, social services, recreation and the business community.

Themes of the day included that strengths were stable industries, a good school system, a new housing subdivisions, the work of Dunkirk Beautification Committee and the city’s parks and pool.

Attendees identified vacant properties, a lack of community involvement from local industries, a heavy dependence on manufacturing, a lack of local shopping options and “brain drain” as challenges facing Dunkirk.

Scottsburg Mayor Bill Graham, who was also president of the Indiana Rural Development Council, complimented those in attendance.

“You have an extremely friendly community,” he said. “Everyone here tonight was looking out for the best interests of Dunkirk.”

Indiana Rural Development Council was designed to provide resources to rural communities and in some cases bring in regional, state and federal officials to assist.

“It’s very hard being a mayor of a small community,” said Graham.

The development council’s staff planned to return to Dunkirk about six weeks later with a written evaluation report. It was to include suggestions for solutions to some of the concerns raised and offer a list of agencies and resources to help.

Dunkirk Mayor Tom Johnson said he felt the event was a good experience “with a lot of good ideas brought out.”