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UA Little Rock welcomes 25 new scholars for 2018-19.
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Dusty Relics of Arkansas History Explore the biography of Freeman Owens, a cinematic innovator.
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50¢ | Vol. 65 | No. 27
Albert P ike:
EXPLORING THE MAN AND THE LEGACY
Writer, lawyer, teacher – even Civil War General – Albert Pike wasted little time during his days on Earth. Originally from Massachusetts, follow his journey to Arkansas on page 12. His legacy is still present today, from the namesake of the first highway between Hot Springs and Colorado Springs to the Memorial Temple, pictured above, which remains on Little Rock’s Scott Street. (Photos by Bobby Burton)
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U of A Clint Stoerner and UnitedHealthcare upgrade North Little Rock Academy Vegetable Garden Former University of Arkansas and NFL quarterback Clint Stoerner and UnitedHealthcare teamed up in early June to renovate the vegetable garden at North Little Rock Academy in North Little Rock. UnitedHealthcare’s $10,000 grant to Stoerner’s Dreambuilders program will enable the school to double the size of the school’s current vegetable garden, build a storage shed and privacy fence, purchase a tiller and enhance the courtyard landscaping. North Little Rock Academy students will plant cabbage, collard greens, strawberries, corn, peas, potatoes and herbs. In a typical growing season, the garden produces 1,500 to 2,000 pounds of produce. All the harvested produce is given to students and staff, as well as neighbors who help watch over the greenhouse.
ABOUT DREAMBUILDERS FOUNDATION The Dreambuilders Foundation is a non-profit organization that works with pro
ABOUT UNITED HEALTH CARE
North Little Rock Academy’s Jim Edwards, North Little Rock School Board Member Dorothy Williams, Principal Charles Jones, UnitedHealthcare Mid-South CEO Steve Wilson, North Little Rock School District Superintendent Kelly Rodgers, Former Razorback and NFL Quarterback Clint Stoerner. (Photo provided)
athletes across the country to help financially, physically and mentally-challenged kids receive the items, opportunities and equipment they need to achieve their dreams. Founded by former
by TRACY COURAGE
Brokerage • Consulting
Jeff Yates 501.352.3325 Jeff@ARKcire.com www.ARKcire.com
grassroots children’ s charities in each city to give them access to funding and support they would not otherwise receive. For more information, please visit dreambuildersfoundation.com.
UA Little Rock announces Donaghey Scholars for 2018-19
Leasing • Management Specialists in the business of helping businesses with their places of business
NFL linebacker Akin Ayodele, Dreambuilders partners with athletes to “captain” one or more of its programs benefiting kids in the athlete’s city of choice. The foundation partners with
UnitedHealthcare is dedicated to helping people live healthier lives and making the health system work better for everyone by simplifying the health care experience, meeting consumer health and wellness needs, and sustaining trusted relationships with care providers. In the United States, UnitedHealthcare offers the full spectrum of health benefit programs for individuals, employers, and Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, and contracts directly with more than 1.2 million physicians and care professionals, and 6,500 hospitals and other care facilities nationwide. The company also provides health benefits and delivers care to people through owned and operated health care facilities in South America. UnitedHealthcare is one of the businesses of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH), a diversified health care company. For more information, visit UnitedHealthcare at www. uhc.com or follow @UHC on Twitter. Source: UnitedHealthcare v
The Donaghey Scholars Program admissions process is highly competitive. The most promising applicants are invited to campus for an interview. Admission decisions are based on academic record, test scores, leadership ability, community service, interest in
other cultures, recommendation letters, admissions essays, and the interview. This year’s incoming class of Donaghey Scholars has an average ACT score of 31. Donaghey Scholars receive a financial package that includes full tuition and fees (up to 18 hours per semester), a stipend, financial assistance to study abroad,
a housing subsidy, and a new laptop. The program features an interdisciplinary core curriculum that emphasizes critical thinking, writing, discussion, and projectbased learning that engages with the city of Little Rock. The students, hometown, high school and intended major are: • Emma Chambers, of Little Rock, Pulaski Academy, Studio
Art • Alondra Cruz, of Little Rock, Mills University Studies High School, Business • Olivia Fitzgibbon, of Little Rock, eStem, Public Relations • Lucca Garcia, of Sheridan, Catholic High School, Nursing • Sadie Goss, of El Dorado, Parkers Chapel High School, CONTINUED ON PAGE 24
We are pleased to announce
Carrie Hansen Escrow Officer
Over 23 years of title experience Carrie@PulaskiCountyTitle.com (501) 537-3700 8114 Cantrell Road, Suite 300, Little Rock, AR 72227
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300 Natural Resources Drive, Little Rock, Arkansas 72205 • (501) 225-1987 affects the real estate industry, NAR calls on its members to act. HOW: Simply by opening the Call for Action emails July 4 – Closed for Independence Day and completing a TWO-CLICK PROCESS! July 9 – AREC Commission Meeting 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. WHY: Calls-for-Action (CFA) are an essential advoJuly 11 – Homesnap Training @ CARMLS cacy tool used to ensure the Realtor voice is heard at the July 12 – New Agent Training @ CARMLS state and federal level July 18 – CMA Class @ CARMLS 10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Go to: http://www.Realtoractioncenter.com/RealtorJuly 19 – YPN Committee meeting July 25 – Auto Email/Collab Center Training @ CARMLS party/act/calls-for-action.html for more information concerning calls for action. Participate in the process July 26 – New Agent Training @ CARMLS when you are called!
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
YPN
There is no YPN this month, so we will see everyone again Tuesday, Aug. 7 at Cache.
AUGUST GENERAL MEETING Watch for future updates on this don’t want to miss event! We have an exciting forum planned.
ALL IN FUN BOWLING COMPETITION Join us Wednesday, Aug. 1, 2018 at Millennium Bowl in North Little Rock for a little fun! We have teamed up with the North Pulaski Board of Realtors for a little friendly competition to raise money for a good cause. All proceeds from this event will go to Our House. Team Registration is $125 for Realtor Members, $150 for Affiliate Teams, and $250 for Team & Sponsorship Tournament starts at 10 a.m. There will be lunch and prizes as well! Spectators are free to attend for $10 at the door. For more information email: parris@lrra.com
SINCE YOU’RE ASKING ... CONTINUING EDUCATION We are in the process of making arrangements for CE tentatively scheduled for Sept. 6, 2018; at St. Vincent’s Auditorium. Brokers and Agents hours will be taught. Please save the date!
ARKANSAS REALTORS ASSOC. 94TH ANNUAL CONVENTION Mark your Calendars: Monday, Sept. 17, 2018 to Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2018 Hot Springs Convention Center Registration Fees through Sept. 7, 2018: Realtor - $225 Spouse/Guest - $199 (non-licensed, non-member) FIRST Time Registrants - $199 Education ONLY - $125 (Breakout & Tradeshow ONLY- NO MEALS or Kickoff Social) Local Board AE - $199 MONDAY CLASS ONLY (NON-Convention Registrant) - $65 Hotel Accommodations: Hotel Hot Springs 501-6236600 Ask for ARA room block. Questions? Email shannon@arkansasRealtors.com or call 501-225-2020
HAVE YOU PARTICIPATED IN THE NAR AND ARA CALLS FOR ACTION? WHAT: When Congress is considering legislation that
tions of just over $105,000. The other candidates have not yet filed financial contribution reports. Eleven people have picked up packets for Director Irma Hendrix’s Ward 1 seat: Greg Henderson, Danny Lewis, Taren Robinson, Michael “Ted” Adkins, Raymond Long, Bryan Frazier, Curtis Johnson, Belinda Barnes, Herbert Broadway, Ronnie Jackson, and Yendel Jones. Director Hendrix has said she will also run. Director Ken Richardson plans to run for re-election of Ward 2. Four potential candidates have picked up packets to run against him: Valerie Tatum, Rohn Muse, Stephanie Johnson, Shalonda Riley, and Ken Richardson. Director Kathy Webb is the only person who has picked up a Ward 3 packet. Ward 4 and the three at-large positions are not The Realtor-of-the-Year award is an annual peer award up for re-elction. Only incumbent Lance Hines has picked of the Arkansas Realtors Association granted to the one up a packet for the Ward 5 position. Realtor who best exemplifies the Realtor spirit. It is based Incumbent Doris Wright, Russ Racop and Stacey Lee on criteria set by the National Association of Realtors and have picked up a packet for Ward 6. includes business accomplishments, community service, For Ward 7, Incumbent B.J. Wyrick, Dr. Robert Wilactivity in the local, state and national Realtor organizaliams, and Edmond Davis have picked up packets. To tions, and adherence to the Golden Rule in all life situations. officially run for the offices, candidates must submit a peThis year, the nomination process will be done online. tition signed by at least 50 qualified voters of the city, be Go to www.arkansasRealtors.com and log in to the mem- at least 21 years old, be a registered voter and live within bers section and select Realtor of the Year. city limits. We encourage video submissions, remember to be The filing period for Little Rock city candidates is July creative! 27 – Aug. 17. Candidates began picking up their candidate packets June 1. Meanwhile, the City Board recently voted down a proposal by City Director Erma Hendrix that would have Do you need your NRDS number to pay dues, make a allowed the public to vote on whether to do away with reservation, log on to Realtor.org? the three at-large director positions. Hendrix claims the If you joined the Realtors association through LRRA, structure allowing three at-large positions to be elected your NRDS number will begin with 1280. by the city as a whole is discriminatory toward the city’s If you don’t have it here are some simple ways to find black constituents. The only board member voting in it: • Look at the white address label on the cover of YOUR favor of Director Hendrix’s proposed measure was DirecRealtor magazine. Your NRDS number will be there. tor Ken Richardson. Following the vote, Director Dean Kumpuris asked city staff to draft a resolution asking the • Check last year’s billing invoice in your Brokers administrative office, it is listed on each billing invoice. new board members and mayor, who will be in place in • Once you have it, write it on the back of your pocket January, to establish a process by which the issue can be researched. card for safe keeping. (Some information for this report was taken from local media reports.)
REALTOR OF THE YEAR
NEED YOUR NRDS NUMBER?
CODE OF ETHICS
YOUR NAR CODE OF ETHICS TRAINING REQUIREMENT IS DUE SOON! Realtors are required to complete ethics training of not less than two hours, 30 minutes of instructional time within two-year cycles. A new two-year cycle began Jan. 1, 2017. The deadline for this cycle is Dec. 31, 2018. To take the course for free online visit: https://learninglibrary.com/COE/A/ If you have already completed this training, please make sure we have a copy of your certificate on file!
LOCAL GOVERNMENT UPDATE
RENEW ONLINE! Realtors can now renew their license online! Visit: https://www.ark.org/arec_renewals/index.php/ user/login to renew your license today! The accepted methods of payment include Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express and eCheck. License Fees are as follows: After Oct. 1 Broker $80 $110 Salesperson $60 $80 Duplicate $30 $60
REALTOR TEAM STORE- LRRA DISCOUNT FOR MEMBERS ONLY
June 2018 The Little Rock mayoral race is shaping up to be one of the most closely watched in years. So far, four candidates Want to order Realtor merchandise and receive a have announced their candidacy for Mayor of Little Rock. discount? Warwick Sabin and Frank Scott, who both had exploratoWell now you can! Go to the address listed below! ry committees, have announced, along with Baker Kurrus lrraRealtorteamstore.com and Vincent Tolliver. According to the City Clerk’s office, Buy Realtor logo merchandise and save 5 percent using others picking up packets to file for mayor include C.E. your Little Rock Realtors Association discount code. Williams, Wesley Peters, and Glenn Schwarz. Enter LRRA under the area marked “Discount CouSabin has raised $238,000 according to his latest pon” during checkout at step 2 of 4. report, while Scott’s most recent filing lists total contribuCONTINUED ON PAGE 15
Board Officers President: Derick Brooks President Elect: Rick Bertram Treasurer: April Findlay; Secretary: Allison Pickell Past President: Stacy Hamilton; Executive Officer: Libby Sheard
Board of Directors LaKesha Crow, Susan Desselle, April Findlay, Fletcher Hanson, Cara Hazlewood, Margaret Bell Hughes, Scott Johnson, Kristen Kennon, Allison Pickell, Tracy Rice, Robert Richardson, Mutsumi “Mitsy” Tharp, Susan Sutton
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BY TOMMY HOWARD
Financial Focus
Jack Nelson Jones, P.A. is located in Little Rock, Arkansas. Jack Nelson Jones represents a wide range of clients across the state and the nation, including First Security Bancorp, Crews & Associates, Inc., American Fuel Cell and Coated Fabrics Company, Bank of the Ozarks, the University of Central Arkansas, and North Little Rock School District. Some of Jack Nelson Jones’ other more well-known national clients include Mr. Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys Football Club.
www.edwardjones.com
QUESTIONS TO ASK YOUR FINANCIAL ADVISOR
Y
ou should always be able to ask as many questions as you’d like when working with your financial advisor. So, before you have your annual review, think carefully about what you’d like to ask. Here are a few suggestions: Are my goals still realistic? When you first began working with your financial advisor, you may well have articulated a number of financial goals. For example, you might have said that you wanted to pay for most of your children’s college educations, or that you wanted to retire at a certain age, or that you wanted to travel for two months each year during your retirement. In fact, you could have many different goals for which you’re saving and investing. When you meet with your financial advisor, you’ll certainly want to ask if you’re still on track toward meeting these goals. If you are, you can continue with the financial strategies you’ve been following; but if you aren’t, you may need to adjust them. Am I taking on too much – or too little – risk? The financial markets always fluctuate, and these movements will affect the value of your investment portfolio. If you watch the markets closely every day and track their impact on your investments, you may find yourself fretting considerably over your investments’ value and wondering if you are taking on too much investment risk for your comfort level. Conversely, if you think that during an extended period of market gains your own portfolio appears to be lagging, you might feel that you should be investing more aggressively, which entails greater risk. In any case, it’s important that you know your own risk tolerance and use it as a guideline for making investment choices – so it’s definitely an issue to discuss with your financial advisor. How will changes in my life affect my investment strategy? Your life is not static. Over time, you may experience any number of major events, such as marriage, children, new jobs and so on. When you meet with your financial advisor, you will want to discuss these types of changes, because they can affect your long-term goals and, consequently, your investment decisions. How are external forces affecting my investment portfolio? Generally speaking, you will want to create an investment strategy that’s based on your goals, risk tolerance and time horizon. And, as mentioned above, you may need to adjust your strategy based on changes in your life. But should you also make changes based on outside forces, such as interest rate movements, political events, new legislation or news affecting industries in which you have invested substantially? Try not to make long-term investment decisions based on short-term news. Yet, talk with your financial advisor to make sure your investment portfolio is not out of alignment with relevant external factors. By making these and other inquiries, you can help yourself stay informed on your overall investment picture and what moves, if any, you should make to keep advancing toward your goals. A financial advisor is there to provide you with valuable expertise – so take full advantage of it. This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor.
The Daily Record is pleased to publish numerous columns from inside and outside sources. The opinions and views of these columnists are their own and do not necessarily convey the opinions of The Daily Record.
Carolyn Lawson v. Simmons Sporting Goods, Inc., 2018 Ark. App. 343, June 6, 2018 This appeal comes from the Ashley County Circuit Court, Honorable Don Glover presiding. It evolves from the circuit court’s dismissal of the case against Simmons Sporting Goods, Inc. (Simmons) for lack of personal jurisdiction. Simmons filed for a writ of certiorari with the United States Supreme Court, which vacated and remanded the case considering the Supreme Court’s decision in Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Superior Court of California. After considering the BristolMyers decision, the Court of Appeals affirmed the circuit court’s dismissal of the case for lack of personal jurisdiction over Simmons. This lawsuit stems from a premises-liability suit. Lawson is a resident of Ashley County, Arkansas. Simmons operates a retail sporting-goods store located in Bastrop, Louisiana. This is the corporation’s only store, and it has never operated a store in Arkansas. It is a Louisiana corporation with its principal place of business, registered office, and registered agent in Bastrop, Louisiana. The corporation has only two shareholders, both of whom are Louisiana residents. Simmons advertises in Arkansas. Its advertising efforts include inserting promotional catalogs and display advertisements into various Arkansas newspapers, running promotional advertisements on television, and running advertisements online with the Arkansas DemocratGazette. The advertisements state that customers can get the same deals by “shopping from home” on its website. Simmons also hosts a “Big Buck Contest” in which the store awards a prize for the largest deer harvested in Arkansas. To qualify, one must live within 200 miles of Bastrop, Louisiana, and must bring the deer to the store in Louisiana to be weighed. Lawson easily lived within the qualifying zone, but she was neither bringing in a deer nor relying on any of the advertisements mentioned above. Instead, on August 3, 2013, Lawson traveled from her home in Arkansas to the Simmons store in Louisiana
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to shop at the “Annual Tent Sale” event. Lawson stated that she did not visit Simmons based on its advertisements but went because her daughter wanted to attend the tent sale that she had learned about by “word of mouth.” Upon entering the store, she fell on a rug located in the foyer and broke her arm. Lawson then filed suit against Simmons in the Ashley County circuit court seeking damages for her pain and suffering, past and future medical expenses associated with care and treatment of the injuries sustained, and current and future restrictions upon her activities imposed by her injuries. In response, Simmons filed its motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction. A hearing was held on the matter, and the circuit court issued an order granting the motion to dismiss. Lawson appealed the order to the Arkansas Court of Appeals, which reversed the circuit court and held that Simmons’s contacts with Arkansas created specific jurisdiction, applying five factors to be considered for determining minimum contacts over nonresident corporations. Those five factors are (1) the nature and quality of contacts with the forum state; (2) the quantity of such contacts; (3) the relation of the cause of action to the contacts; (4) the interest of the forum state in providing a forum for its residents; and (5) convenience of the parties. The Court of Appeals held the out-of-state corporation had created specific jurisdiction and was a proper party to Lawson’s action. The facts considered were Simmons’s printing catalogs and distributing them in Arkansas, purchasing newspaper advertising in Arkansas newspapers, as well as television advertisements. Of course, the most notable event was hosting a contest targeting only Arkansas residents for the largest deer harvested in Arkansas, (but the entry had to be brought to Bastrop, Louisiana and weighed at Simmons’s store). The Court of Appeals held that, while the relation of the cause of action to the contacts was weak, Simmons’s acts cumulatively outweighed that weakness in Lawson’s case. As earlier stated, Simmons
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filed a petition for review with the Arkansas Supreme Court, which was denied. Simmons filed a petition for a writ of certiorari with the United States Supreme Court, and the Supreme Court vacated the Court of Appeals opinion in light of its decision in BristolMyers. In Bristol-Myers, a group of plaintiffs consisting of 86 California residents and 592 residents from 33 other States brought a mass tort action in California state court against Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS), a large pharmaceutical company. The plaintiffs asserted a variety of state-law claims based on injuries allegedly caused by Plavix, a drug manufactured by BMS. While BMS is incorporated in Delaware and headquartered in New York, it does have facilities employing around 160 employees located in California, it also employs about 250 sales representatives in California and it maintains a small stategovernment advocacy office in Sacramento. BMS challenged the California court’s exercise of jurisdiction over the company as to the claims of the nonresident plaintiffs, none of whom asserted any injury from the drug in California or any other connection to the state. Applying a “slidingscale approach to specific jurisdiction,” the California Supreme Court held that BMS’s contacts with California created specific jurisdiction as to all plaintiffs’ claims. BMS appealed the decision to the United States Supreme Court, which agreed with BMS that the California court’s exercise of specific jurisdiction over the company as to those claims brought by the nonresident plaintiffs violated the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. It found no support for the use of a loose and spurious form of general connections with the forum to give specific jurisdiction over BMS. A corporation’s continuous activity of some sorts within a state is not enough to make the corporation amenable to suits unrelated to that activity. The claims brought by all out-of-state plaintiffs were dismissed. Simmons’s case was dismissed and remanded to the Arkansas Court to reconsider its earlier decision based upon the BMS decision. Our cause of action arose out of a slip and fall suit that occurred in Louisiana; it was not directly connected to Simmons’s advertisemaents. BristolMyers prevents a court from exercising specific jurisdiction when there is no connection between the cause of action and the forum. In other words, in Bristol-Myers, the Supreme Court mandated a “straightforward application . . . of settled principles of personal jurisdiction.” The Court of Appeals found that, in light of the Supreme Court’s decision in Bristol-Myers, Arkansas did not have specific jurisdiction over Simmons. The circuit court’s dismissal of Lawson’s complaint for lack of personal jurisdiction was affirmed. v
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Commercial Real Estate around Central Arkansas BY JEFF YATES
What’s Happening Jeff@ARKCIRE.com
Heads up! The next quarterly CCIM Commercial Real Estate Lunch take place July 19. This quarter’s discussion topic is commercial real estate in North Little Rock. Danny Bradley from the North Little Rock Mayor’s office will be the featured speaker. More details and registration are available at www.ccim-ar.org. Restaurants around Little Rock have been closing. Del Frisco’s Grille is yet the latest example in a recent series. Some new restaurants have opened. Juicy Seafood on Cantrell Road (aka Highway 10) is a recent addition. I’m relying on only my own observations to suggest that the empirical data yields net negative absorption. I believe the same holds true with retail. Because of the investments in restaurant buildings for the specialty of use, restaurants tend to beget restaurants. Retail buildings however are generally four walls, a roof and a floor that are essentially blank canvasses for adaptive reuse at discounted costs. The pre-Great Recession retail expansion of the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s positioned the United States to have the most retail floor area per capita of any nation in the world. The so-called “Retail Armageddon” is in some part an adjustment of over-supply. Over supply, limited demand and changing demographics are leading to redevelopment of some retail properties to office, mixeduse, medical and efforts to create live-work-play environments. Most of the available properties of this type can be purchased at a fraction of replacement cost, or the cost to build them today. This low cost relative to new, or newer, construction affects the demand for new construction. Contractors and vendors specializing in renovation may benefit. It seems like those contractors and vendors that are invested in creating new product are plenty busy anyway so maybe this helps create balance in the market. Some recent Little Rock commercial real estate happenings include an update on a previously mentioned transaction involving Centennial Bank. Related properties at 1215 and 1221 Rebsamen Park Road recently sold. Those addresses denote the former Dixie Café and the parking lot serving the same. The two properties combine for a total of 45,049 square feet of land area according to the Pulaski County Assessor’s office. Similarly, the former restaurant building has a floor area of just about seven thousand square feet. What was the price you ask? County records
tell us that the consideration was $1,300,000. Now, given the expense in adaptive reuse of a restaurant building, and without knowing the construction budget, I see this effectively as a land sale. The cost of converting a restaurant building to a bank building, if that’s the plan, must be similar in cost to constructing a new building from the ground up. Heck, even demolition costs are expensive these days. As a land sale, that’s north of $1,250,000 per acre. This per acre value pales in comparison to the 0.67-acre sale at 610 S. Bowman. Back in January of 2016, this carve-out parcel was sold by Walmart for $1,320,000. Subsequently, a Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers was constructed on the site, including site development costs to create a building pad. The resulting 2,627 square foot single-tenant-net-leased building sold last month for the bargain price of $2,420,000. With a long-term lease in place, that’s $1,100,000 more that what was paid for the land. That works out to be a difference of just about $418 per square foot relative to the building area. Not all restaurant sites on the west side are created equal. A building constructed for Dunkin Donuts at 10721 Kanis Road sold last month for $1,275,000. The land for this building was purchased some time ago, in December 2011. Back then, the property traded for $259,000. Hard to say what the land value is on that corner without the building. It will be interesting to see what the next use of that building is. Just around the corner at 1301 S. Shackleford, the Hampton Inn sold for $11,925,000, or almost $95,000 per door. In the possibly-coming-soon department, there is a proposal in front of the Little Rock Planning Commission to raze the building at 7706 Cantrell Road where Hog Wash Detail has been located and replace it with a tunnel-style car wash. That seems like a tight fit to me. Maybe the property is deeper from the street than it appears to be. A bakery is being proposed for the property at the northeast corner of Van Buren and A Street. This is one block north of Markham. Based on the Planning Staff’s review of the proposed development plan, this project may not be rising without some substantial changes to the recipe. Little Rock’s westward expansion will continue under a proposal for a 180-acre annexation along Kanis Road to bring more Deltic/ Potlatch property inside the City Limits. Work was done recently to homogenize width, curbs, gutters and sidewalks along Taylor Loop Road between Rahling Road and La Marche Drive. Widening and other improvements had been done piecemeal by property owners over the years in accordance with the Boundary Street Ordinance. The resulting roadway was wider in some sections than others, and in some areas there were curbs, gutters and sidewalks while in other areas there were just open ditches. The area has seen steady residential development for several years. Since the construction of Don
R. Roberts Elementary School and the extension of La Marche Drive there has been a further uptick in investment in neighborhoods around Taylor Loop Road. It is worth noting that both the La Marche Drive extension and this evening-out of Taylor Loop Road were completed by the City of Little Rock. This effort by the City looks to have a compounding effect as there are even more residential developments proposed in the area since the work was completed earlier this year. A couple of those proposed are La Marche Village at the corner of Taylor Loop and La Marche, and Townhouse Apartments at the corner of Taylor Loop and Gooch Drive. Put down your pitchforks, the site plan reflects buildings that are effectively six attached patio homes, not a three-story multihundred unit complex. Were it me, I might rename this project. In other school news, word on the street is that Little Scholars Academy (LISA) charter school in North Little Rock is pursuing an expansion of its Landers Road location. I’m told that LISA is purchasing land adjacent to the current building, which started life as a Best Buy store (see above regarding re-use of retail buildings), for a new high
school building and some athletic fields. It seems that more kids, and parents, want to further their educations at LISA. Warning, more editorializing ahead! Jobs, jobs, jobs; jobs are the foundation for economic growth in a community. Without jobs, demand for goods, services, homes and business locations lag. The Mayoral election this fall is, at the end of the day, about jobs. Decision makers in this day and age choose business locations in large part on quality-of-life issues. Why? Because they can. Dozens of communities have a good handle on the basics such as public schools, public safety and public works. Those communities are in a position to tout their good records in those departments, to brag about their quality of life, to show that they have dynamic downtowns AND that they had the foresight to invest in their neighborhoods beyond downtown. It is not reasonable to vainly compete in a twenty first century world with mid-twentyfirst century rules, regulations and organizational structure. Little Rock has an income divide. Little Rock has large percentages of those with plenty and those with little. Those who are in in the middle are choosing to
live where they perceive public schools, public safety and public works to be better handled than Little Rock. This fall is an election for the next Mayor of Little Rock. Mayor Stodola has chosen to retire. So, there will be a change of mayor. Do you have questions, comments or concerns for the next mayor? Get a pencil or open the calendar on your computer or smart phone. Mark this date. On Sept. 18 (that’s closer than you think it is … ) there will be a Commercial Real Estate Industry Issues Lunch. The candidates for the 2nd District Congressional seat and the candidates for Little Rock Mayor will be present to answer questions and provide insight into how their plans might affect commercial real estate in Central Arkansas. You can find more information and purchase tickets, or an entire table, at www. bomaglr.org. I hope to see you at Pleasant Valley Country Club. Tips and suggestions, well most of them anyway, are appreciated. Hope you found something interesting in the column this month. Check back again next month for the things that didn’t get included here this time and that pop up between now and then. v