Central High site’s expansion now law

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed legislation Friday expanding the boundaries of the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site.

Sponsored by U.S. Rep. French Hill, it adds seven houses on South Park Street, sitting on roughly 1.5 acres.

HR2611 also empowers the secretary of the Interior Department to reach “cooperative agreements” with the homeowners to help preserve the site.

The property owners supported the move, advocates said.

“It’s an exciting, historic day for Arkansas and Little Rock,” Hill said in a news release. “I’m pleased that this bill is now law because Arkansas’s history is America’s history.”

The Republican from Little Rock worked with U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton on the measure.

“This is a proud day for our state and for everyone who cares about American history,” Cotton, a Republican from Dardanelle, said in a written statement.

“Preserving Little Rock Central High and the surrounding neighborhood will help make sure we never forget what the Little Rock Nine went through to banish ‘separate but equal’ to the dustbin of history.”

The legislation passed the House 390-0 in September and then the Senate shortly before Christmas.

Earlier this month, Hill met with journalism students at Central High School and filled them in on the legislation’s passage.

“It was lot of fun. They asked great questions,” Hill said last week.