Our Town

New downtown Little Rock pedestrian bridge due by year’s end; will connect walkers to river island

Work continues on a pedestrian bridge connecting the Arkansas River Trail beneath the Clinton Presidential Library onto a 9-acre island.
Work continues on a pedestrian bridge connecting the Arkansas River Trail beneath the Clinton Presidential Library onto a 9-acre island.

A new pedestrian bridge to take people from the Clinton Presidential Center to an island in the Arkansas River will be complete by the end of the year, Little Rock officials said.

It will be called the Sturgis Bridge and is estimated to cost $942,000.

The Sturgis Foundation gave a $450,000 grant toward the project. The remainder will be covered by city money from a sales tax for capital improvements and proceeds from 1998 infrastructure bonds, city spokesman Jennifer Godwin said.

“Maintenance will be performed with current annual public works allocations for street maintenance in the Street Fund budget,” Godwin said, meaning the city’s budget won’t increase because of the new infrastructure.

The bridge will be handicap accessible and is similar to the one near the La Petite Roche monument.

It “will provide instant access to this island and its habitat. It’s a project that affirms the city’s commitment to improve the quality of life for its residents by developing public spaces such as this one, where people are able to interact with the natural environment, land and water,” Godwin said.

The structure of the steel truss bridge will be prefabricated and is expected to be delivered to Little Rock sometime this year, though a delivery date hasn’t been set.

“We expect it’s going to open by the end of the year. … I think it will be a nice addition,” said Mike Hood, the city’s civil engineering manager.

Scribes’ task: Riff on Arabian Nights

The Central Arkansas Library System will begin accepting entries for its Banned Books Week writing contest Thursday.

Banned Books Week, an annual event celebrating the freedom to read, is Sept. 25 to Oct. 1.

Entries for the contest, based on the book A Thousand and One Nights, also known as Arabian Nights, will be accepted Thursday through Sept. 19.

People of all ages can enter. There are categories for entrants under 12 years old, ages 12 to 17, and 18 and older. A $100 honorable mention prize will be given to someone from each age group, and one grand prize of $300 will be given across all categories.

Residents of Pulaski and Perry counties are eligible. They must submit one entry of a short story between 50 and 500 words that includes Sinbad the Sailor or Shahrazad — central characters of the book chosen for this year’s theme.

The first page of the submission must include the author’s name, age, address, email address and telephone number. If under the age of 18, the submission must include a parent’s name and signature.

Entries may be emailed to LitFest@cals.org or mailed to Arkansas Literary Festival Arabian Nights Contest, attn: Brad Mooy, 100 Rock Street, Little Rock, AR 72201.

Children under the age of 12 may hand-write their entries. All other entries must be typed.

Suicide prevention event scheduled

Registration is now open for the Center for Healing Hearts and Spirits’ coming Suicide Prevention Conference.

The Sept. 13 conference will be from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Saint Mark Baptist Church’s Children and Youth Center, 5722 W. 12th St.

Admission is free, but registration is required.

Those who wish to register may contact hhscenter@sbcglobal.net to receive a registration form. More information is available by calling (501) 372-3800.

Orangutan makes debut at LR Zoo

The Little Rock Zoo introduced its new male orangutan to its outdoor exhibit last week.

Bandar, a Bornean orangutan, is 23 years old. The 315-pound great ape arrived from Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, Neb.

A female orangutan will join him sometime this fall, zoo officials said.

“It’s estimated that 104,700 Bornean orangutans live in the wild,” Zoo Director Mike Blakely said in a news release. “That sounds like a lot, but that number represents a decline from an estimated 288,500 individuals in 1973, and the numbers are projected to decline to 47,000 individuals by 2025.”

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