Senate requests Capitol funding
It seeks $1.4M to revamp 4 spaces
The Arkansas Senate is seeking a $1.4 million state grant to help restore the Old Supreme Courtroom and renovate three other legislative committee rooms on the south side of the state Capitol, state records show.
The Senate has submitted its grant request to the Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resources Council for fiscal 2019, which starts July 1. The council will consider 18 grant requests during its May 9 meeting at the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center in Little Rock, said Melissa Whitfield, a spokesman for the state Department of Arkansas Heritage.
The Senate is making its first such request for funds from the council, “though there have been multiple applications and receipts of grants for improvements at the Capitol building for interior and exterior improvements awarded to other entities,” according to the Senate’s grant request.
“While there are maintenance funds for the Capitol’s upkeep, there are no funds for restoration or other rehabilitation. Each governmental entity that occupies space within the
building are responsible for maintaining the spaces they utilize except for the maintenance of the heating and cooling systems as well as lighting maintenance.”
The Senate’s request comes on the heels of the council awarding the House of Representatives $824,000 in 2016 and then $981,000 in 2017 to help finance the renovation of legislative committee Rooms 130, 138, 149 and 151, and the adjoining legislative offices on the north side of the state Capitol. Work on the renovation of those committee rooms has been completed, according to House officials. Previously, the rooms hadn’t been renovated for a few decades.
More than $36 million in grant funding also has been requested by the Department of Parks and Tourism; Department of Arkansas Heritage; Forestry Commission; School for the Blind; School for the Deaf; the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville; Arkansas State University, Jonesboro; and six other universities for fiscal 2019, according to Department of Arkansas Heritage records. The amount of funds available for grants is expected to be about $23 million, said Whitfield.
The amounts distributed have generally followed the ups and downs of the real estate market over the years, according to state officials. That’s because the source of the funds is revenue from real estate transfer taxes.
State law directs the council, created in 1987, to award its funds for acquisition, management and stewardship of state-owned lands or the preservation of state-owned historic sites, buildings, structures or objects. The council also can award funds for work on objects to be determined of value for recreational or conservation purposes.
“Through the generations, Democrats and Republicans have taken great pride and kept our Capitol in great physical shape,” said Sen. Keith Ingram, D-West Memphis, who is a co-chairman of the Joint Legislative Facilities Committee.
The Old Supreme Court chamber “is one of the most beautiful rooms in the Capitol,” and “the peeling and the cracking of the painting is a real problem that’s got to be addressed,” he said Friday in an interview. The chamber is used as a meeting room for legislators and others, and for public tours and events.
Ingram said the secretary of state’s office is installing new exterior windows to help with the heating and cooling problems in the room. Chris Powell, spokesman for the secretary of state’s office, wrote in an email that installation would take place in April.
The Senate’s request for $1.422 million from the Cultural and Natural Resources Council is for restoration of the Old Supreme Court Chamber and the renovation of Senate committee Rooms 171, 207 and 272, according to its grant application.
“The Senate has the resources to fund the needed improvements to committee Rooms 171, 207 and 272. But due to the significant cost of restoring the Supreme Courtroom, additional funds are being sought for the work associated with the grandspace,” the Senate’s grant request states.
Clements & Associates Architecture Inc. of North Little Rock estimated that it would cost $525,000 to remove paint from the plaster, $210,000 for paint and decorative glaze, $207,168 for “general conditions” and $117,464 for architectural and engineering fees and expenses.
The firm projected a probable construction cost of $598,329 for converting the five-bay Room 171 into a three-bay committee room with two offices and support areas. The cost of renovating Room 272 is estimated at $180,572 and of renovating Room 207 at $155,839.
The Old Supreme Court Chamber received upgrades in 2000-01, while the Senate committee rooms received upgrades in 1995-96, but “due to failures in the finishes, changes in the programmatic use of the committee rooms or technical upgrades that need to be accommodated since that time, these upgrades are long overdue,” the Senate’s grant request states.
The courtroom had acoustic problems until recently, when a new sound system was installed, “however, the electronic devices have been temporarily mounted on stands until a plaster repair project is undertaken to conceal the cabling,” the Senate’s grant request states.
The Natural and Cultural Resources Council consists of 11 voting members, including state Land Commissioner John Thurston. The council typically awards the largest grants to the Department of Arkansas Heritage and the Department of Parks and Tourism. Arkansas Heritage Director Stacy Hurst, and Parks and Tourism Director Kane Webb serve on the council.
Arkansas Heritage is seeking $12.8 million in grant funds, and Parks and Tourism is requesting $12.8 million in grant funds, according to state records. The Forestry Commission’s request for $2.2 million is the only other request that’s larger than the state Senate’s request, the records show.
Ingram said the Senate’s proposed project is “probably a multiyear project. You’ll see what type of dollars will be awarded and adjust accordingly.”