Our Town

Little Rock notebook

Endangered place list to be released

The Historic Preservation Alliance of Arkansas is set to announce its 2015 Most Endangered Places list Thursday.

The announcement will be at 10:30 a.m. at the Willie L. Hinton Neighborhood Resource Center, 3805 W. 12th St.

It will take place outside on the southwest corner of the grounds near the corner of 13th and Pine streets. A list with photographs and information about the chosen places will be provided.

After the morning announcement, the alliance will host a happy hour from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Green Corner Store and Soda Fountain downtown at 1423 S. Main St.

A portion of the sales of ice cream scoops, sundaes and shakes with preservation pecan and mint julep flavors will fund the alliance.

At least one of the places to be designated in this year's list is already on the city's demolition list. The Little Rock Board of Directors voted last week to demolish the Brittnum Rooming House at 1325 W. 12th St.

Its owner repeatedly has been before the board asking for more time to renovate the structure. The board had granted that initially but decided last week that it wouldn't give more extensions.

Panel to discuss architect's legacy

A panel discussion on the career and legacy of late architect Ed Cromwell is planned for next week.

The Architecture and Design Network is planning a May 19 event at the Arkansas Arts Center at 6 p.m.

"There would be no Maumelle if it hadn't been for Cromwell's vision of a planned community on the 5,000 acres of land owned by Jess P. Odum, an Arkansas businessman and insurance executive," a news release said. "The Capital Hotel might have been taken out by the wrecker's ball if it hadn't been for his determination to save the historic structure."

The release also said Cromwell advocated for riverfront development and championed historic preservation. He founded Cromwell Architects and Engineers.

Charles Penix, the chief operating officer at the firm, will join Historic Arkansas Museum Director Bill Worthen and Don Evans, an architect and associate of Cromwell's, on the panel.

Cromwell graduated from Princeton in 1931 and moved to Little Rock in 1935. He died in 2001.

A reception will precede the discussion at 5:30 p.m.

Housing alliance gets help for vets

Little Rock's public housing authority has been granted an additional 79 housing vouchers for veterans, increasing its total to 179.

The Metropolitan Housing Alliance also was given control of $341,000 from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to aid in its efforts to house veterans. The vouchers are through the VASH program -- Veterans Supportive Housing.

HUD distributed approximately $75 million nationwide to help homeless veterans obtain permanent housing.

The Little Rock housing authority owns 902 public housing units, 200 affordable housing units, 158 market-rate units, operates homeownership programs, and administers 2,083 housing choice vouchers.

Metro on 05/10/2015

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