Little Rock voters approved issuing bonds to benefit the Arkansas Arts Center and MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History during a special election Tuesday.
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With all 72 precincts reporting, the complete but unofficial results were:
FOR 6,729
AGAINST 1,256
With five votes not counted -- because they were blank or had too many selections -- the turnout comes to about 6.6 percent of the city's 120,869 eligible voters.
A group that had campaigned for the ballot measure gathered with officials from the Arts Center, the MacArthur Museum and the city at a watch part Tuesday at the Heights Taco and Tamale restaurant.
They mingled, snacked on chips and dip and other appetizers, and ordered drinks while waiting for the precinct tallies to come in. Someone updated a dry-erase board at the front of the room each time the Pulaski County Election Commission updated its precinct reports.
Gary Smith, chairman of the Committee For Arts and History, which raised funds to mount an election campaign, said he was surprised by what he called a high turnout.
"I've been involved in a lot of campaigns and elections, and I have not ever seen such widespread support. And it's interesting that between the Robinson vote and this vote, that people of Little Rock really do want to support the arts," he said.
Tuesday's turnout was higher than the last special bond election in Little Rock in 2013 when voters approved a $68 million renovation of the Robinson Center. The turnout for that election was 5.9 percent.
This time, voters authorized bonds up to $37.5 million to be taken out and secured with proceeds from a 2 percent hotel tax that the Board of Directors approved last year.
Collection of the tax began Jan. 1 and would have continued regardless of Tuesday's outcome.
Arts Center Executive Director Todd Herman said at the watch party that with the bond sale approved, the center can now move forward with specific plans.
The Arts Center hasn't yet announced any specific renovation or expansion plans because officials won't know what budget they're working with until they get an idea of how much private money can be raised to pair with the bond revenue.
Officials have said it will take significant private donations along with with the public funds in order to do anything substantial.
Needs of the Arts Center, according to officials, include updating the heating-and-air system, adding vault storage and education spaces, and renovating the Children's Theatre and studio spaces.
Herman said fundraisers can now tell private donors that the center has public funds secured, which will "go a long way" in getting more private donations.
The center will hire someone to do a feasibility study to estimate how much in private donations might be raised to develop a budget for the center's renovation or expansion.
Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola has promised that the process for putting out requests for proposals from architects to the selection of the architect and the development of plans will be "transparent."
A grand opening of the overhauled Arts Center is still four to five years away, Herman said.
Expansion and renovation will likely help attract "more spectacular" exhibitions, he added.
"It will also allow us to expand our education, which I think this vote says something in that the community likes what we offer -- the Children's Theatre, the arts classes. We will be able to upgrade those spaces and make those experiences better," he said. "Ultimately, we will make a structure that becomes a beacon for MacArthur Park, that helps energize that entire park, not just our building. It will make people want to come there and spend time there."
Most of the bond revenue will go to the Arts Center; about $1 million will go toward improvements to the military museum.
The museum is in a 175-year-old building and is in dire need of maintenance, the museum's Executive Director Stephan McAteer said.
Tuesday's final vote count announcement came in at 10:30 p.m.
The tallying took longer than usual, with New Hampshire's presidential primary being called hours before the Little Rock bond election. Another special election in Pulaski County -- on a millage increase for the Jacksonville North Pulaski School District -- also was called long before the Little Rock results were in.
Election Commission Executive Bryan Poe said a polling station leader left her results and had to go back for them, which delayed the final tally.
Stodola said at the watch party Tuesday night that he was excited about the outcome and what it means for the future of Little Rock.
"This is a commanding victory for the arts and culture of our city, which is a quality of life issue," he said. "I think we should be thankful for it. I think many cities that are in competition with us will be envious of it. It was a good campaign. We focused on the issues. It's not just the arts, but it's history, it's our veterans, our military museum, which is a national historic landmark.
"This was a double win for us and the city."
A Section on 02/10/2016