Update on Valley Originals from Genn Anzaldi and Wally Campbell

I enjoyed the interview. Topics hit home and were balanced well. Thank you Mark!

A few comments

Mr Campbell has benefited from the sale of his property. Now he scorns the hand that fed him? Shame! He wishes to speak against the chains all the while profiting from them. I would suggest he has a conflict of interest in his position as a Valley Original board member based on where his finances came from.

I respect the Valley original concept and applaud their work in keeping things at a local level. Thank you to all who run the program! It a worthy project.

As to casinos. I don’t feel they are a good idea for the communities both in and around Conway. I travel far and wide and have seen the degradation of towns that host casinos. All good intentions noted, placing a gambling house in a lower income community will only undermine the foundation of this area furthering the decline of the local population.

Casinos are for tourists entertainment but will have unintended consequences in my opinion. I enjoy a good casino night but too many do not have the ability to just enjoy one night. Thank you for covering the topic.

The franchise’s are drawing away locals from mom & pop restaurants simply because they have the tables! Albeit Similar staffing issues.

I often frequent Valley Original restaurants (or used to) but as of the last couple years, you can’t get a seat! Or waiting lines are 1 hr+ long. Furthermore they are closed on Monday & Tuesday when the locals would go to avoid the crowds.

It’s a conundrum for the owners who are terribly short staffed. They don’t want to turn over good help due to burn out. However the statement about catering to locals is falling short of fairness when the locals can’t get a seat at a table in a “locals” restaurant.

This town needs some control over growth of franchisees and must take a serious look at local housing in order to prevent what I’ve seen so many towns turn to.

Anytown USA!