WEED AND SEED WILL MEET HERE SATURDAY

Like a child needs instruction to learn, members of Southeast Missouri Weed and Seed Inc. need direction if they are to learn everything they need to know about eliminating drug crimes in the region.

The board, which includes all members of local steering committees from Cape Girardeau, Sikeston, Poplar Bluff, Charleston and Caruthersville, will meet Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Family Life Center at Centenary United Methodist Church for a training session.

Representatives from the executive office of Weed and Seed in Washington, D.C., will help lead the training. Among some of the meeting topics will be the search for a new executive director.

Even though Southeast Missouri Weed and Seed Inc. is still in its infancy, improvements can be seen and crime has been reduced, board members say.

Weed and Seed is a Justice Department initiative aimed at "weeding" out drugs and crime and "seeding" targeted areas with other resources, opportunities and education.

Even in Cape Girardeau, the last city to officially sign on with the project, there are obvious results, said city Police Chief Rick Hetzel. He serves as president of the regional Weed and Seed board.

"You can look at the south precinct and the Safe Streets," he said, referring to two projects funded by Weed and Seed. A neighborhood police station on Good Hope Street opened in October, and Operation Safe Streets lets police target certain neighborhoods or crimes by putting additional patrolmen on the streets.

Other things like grant funding for youth trips to Washington, D.C., a summer lunch program provided in the safe haven areas of targeted neighborhoods, and after-school tutoring or reading programs for schoolchildren are evidence of Weed and Seed at work, Hetzel said.

"We have had some successes and some bumps in the road," he said. "But it's a collaborative effort to address crime issues."

Without Weed and Seed, it is likely that Southeast Missouri wouldn't be working together as a group to combat crime, Hetzel said. The project gives each of the communities its own goals but also a common goal, he said.

"You can see what Weed and Seed is doing and know that it's still in its infancy," Hetzel said.

The Southeast Missouri Weed and Seed project is the first in the nation to combine its efforts regionally. Most other Weed and Seed projects focus only on one city.

That difference can also create some inconsistencies within the project: When one city's Weed and Seed buys equipment it is then owned by the city, but when equipment is purchased by the regional board dividing property gets tricky.

A manual helps answer some questions, but it comes down to common sense and some extrapolation from the book, said Hetzel. Saturday's training should help answer questions and provide clarity and consistency, he said.

It is also a chance for the members to get an update on the search for a new executive director. Calvin Bird, the first and only executive director of the project, resigned in April. A nationwide search has collected 25 applications. After reviewing resumes, the regional board has narrowed its list to six potential candidates.

Four of the six are from Missouri and two are local. All together the applicants represent five states. The candidates will meet with board members June Thursday for interviews and a reception.

Board members hope to have a new director hired by July.