Renaming sportsplex for former mayor is good idea

By Staff
The Russellville City Council voted recently to rename the Lee Sportsplex – originally named for a manufacturing plant that is no longer here – for the man who was instrumental in getting the project completed.
John Blackwell, who served as Russellville's mayor for 12 years beginning in 1988, will now be remembered by all of the children he had hoped to help when he tackled the ambitious project of bringing top-notch baseball and softball fields to the city of Russellville.
The move furthers civic pride in the community, which is always a good thing. Given the tough economic crisis, the city could have tried to find corporate sponsorship for the fields and given the sportsplex a corporate name. Instead, it honored the man that made the dream a reality.