Inadequate access to a family cemetery in North Little Rock led relatives of those buried there to ask the North Little Rock City Council on Monday night for assistance in restoring what was once the cemetery's road.
The road to the small, fenced Richards Cemetery, near 46th Street and Smokey Lane, northeast of McCain Mall, is now impassable because the street has been sodded and a sprinkler system installed, Richards family members said Monday. It was the second time they asked the City Council for help.
The change occurred with the development of the Fountaine Bleau North apartments, 4401 E. 46th St., late last year, family members said when they arrived at the Aug. 25 City Council meeting. The roadway would have been adjacent to the new apartments, but itwas covered with sod and grass instead.
Geneva Richards Earles of Heber Springs, one of 14 people in the group, said Monday that the cemetery has been there since the late 1800s and that mail used to be delivered along the road that she said is no longer there.
"We need our road open so we can get to the cemetery," Earles said.
The cemetery is now 77 yards from what used to be the start of the road, John Richards VI of Little Rock told aldermen.
"You have to park on asphalt and walk through mud to get to the cemetery," Richards said.
Peggy Rupp of Searcy called the sodded area "slush and muck" that is impassable.
Jonathan Crouch of Maumelle said he has grandparents, great-grandparents and great-great grandparents buried at the cemetery, but he can't visit their graves because the roadway was sodded over.
"We try to take care of [the cemetery] as much as we can, mowing it and maintaining it," Crouch said. "But I can't get in there. My truck has gotten stuck multiple times. All of these people here have great love and respect for this family."
While City Council members didn't offer a solution, Aldermen Debi Ross and Beth White said they sympathized with the family members and agreed that some access to the cemetery should be restored. Both said they had driven there separately on their own but didn't try to drive over the sodded roadway.
"I'm not going to drive my car over that," Ross said. "You can't deny them. If they were my family members out there, I'd probably be out there trying to pour concrete myself."
White said she and her husband drove to the site in a "small car" but didn't try to drive into the cemetery.
"We backed off," White said. "Something needs to be done. I understand the concern."
Metro on 09/15/2015