Cash approved for 2 LR parks hit by tornado

More than $400,000 going to rebuild ruined structures

Crews will rebuild structures at two Little Rock parks located in the path of the destructive tornado that hit the metro area on March 31, 2023.

During a meeting on Tuesday, the Little Rock Board of Directors authorized spending more than $400,000 on the improvements to Murray Park and Reservoir Park.

An outdoor fitness structure known as a Fitlot in Murray Park will be repaired under a contract with ACS Playground Adventures for up to $92,000, according to city board documents.

The tennis courts and pavilion at Reservoir Park will be rebuilt by Byrne & Jones Construction. The city is expected to pay the firm up to $325,000.

Two resolutions authorizing the spending were approved along with other items as part of the city board’s consent agenda.

Federal Emergency Management Agency funding — as well as funding from insurance reimbursement — will bankroll the work at both parks, city board documents revealed.

Also on Tuesday, city board members voted to spend up to an additional $76,100 on engineering services in order to take advantage of grant funding on a project to improve walkability and safety along a stretch of West Markham Street.

They approved a resolution that authorizes amending an earlier agreement with McClelland Consulting Engineers, bringing the total contract amount to $198,600.

A $1.1 million grant of federal funding awarded last year by the board of directors of Metroplan, the regional planning agency for Central Arkansas, for the construction of a portion of the street improvements comes with certain conditions that the city’s consultant must meet, according to city board documents.

“This resolution authorizes an amendment to the contract to develop the final plans and related work to meet the requirements of the grant conditions,” a memo from the city manager’s office stated.

Jon Honeywell, the director of the Little Rock Public Works Department,

told city board members last week that the West Markham Street improvements are intended to extend west from Kavanaugh Boulevard toward the intersections with Pine and Cedar streets.

However, the initial phase of the improvements likely would encompass the three or four blocks west of the intersection of West Markham and Kavanaugh, Honeywell said.

According to the plan, West Markham will be reduced to one lane in each direction with a center turn lane to allow sidewalks to be constructed on both sides of the street.