Downtown park in Newport honors heroes

This MESA Landscape Architects-generated image depicts the new downtown park in Newport, including the Veterans Memorial area where honorary bricks will be installed. Mayor David Stewart said the park is scheduled to open at the end of September.
This MESA Landscape Architects-generated image depicts the new downtown park in Newport, including the Veterans Memorial area where honorary bricks will be installed. Mayor David Stewart said the park is scheduled to open at the end of September.

— The people of Jackson County are honoring veterans and community members brick by brick at the new downtown park in Newport.

Jon Chadwell, executive director of the Newport Economic Development Commission and co-chair of Newport DRIVE (Downtown Revitalization and Improvement Volunteer Effort), said bricks can be purchased and placed in different areas around the park.

All bricks in the Veterans Memorial area will be 4 by 8 inches, he said.

“We will have three colors in this area: a dark gray for those killed in service, a lighter gray for veterans who have lived at least part of their lives in Jackson County and a tan color for veterans who have never lived in Jackson County but have family that does,” he said.

Antique or cinnamon-red bricks can also be purchased in the same size to honor nonveterans, he said, and will be placed in a sidewalk along Front Street in the memory and honor area.

A brick with three lines costs $100, he said, and an extra line can be purchased for $10 more.

Chadwell said proceeds from the brick sales will be used to develop the Veterans Memorial and downtown park.

Newport Mayor David Stewart said the park is scheduled to open at the end of September.

The bricks will be an interesting addition to the park, he said, and provide a place for people to commemorate their loved ones.

Stewart said his father was a World War II veteran but also owned a business in downtown Newport, so he will be buying two bricks in his honor to go in different areas of the park.

“The park is about three-fourths finished right now, and we hope to have it open by the last week of September so we can have our annual Depot Day celebration in and around the park,” he said.

Stewart said the park will include an amphitheater in honor of Terry Scoggins.

“He passed away several years ago, but he was very instrumental in the park and downtown area of Newport in general. We wanted to honor him in naming the amphitheater after him,” Stewart said.

The park will also include benches, green space, sidewalks and the Veterans Memorial area, he said, which will take up about half of the park.

“We’ve been working on the park for about three years now, but construction has only been going on for the past few months,” he said.

The park has mainly been funded through grants and personal and corporate donations, he said.

Chadwell said sponsors who donate $5,000 or more will be honored in a special area of the park, and sponsors’ brick sizes will depend on the amount donated.

“The amounts are $5,000, $10,000, $20,000 and $50,000. The amount can be paid in installments over five years. Some businesses will do their logo across their bricks, and others will do their brick display in honor of someone. These bricks will be right in front of the stage in a special area,” he said.

Chadwell said the first round of bricks will be installed in the memory and honor area of the park by the end of September; the first round of veterans bricks will be installed in the memorial area by Veterans Day; and sponsor bricks will be installed by early next year.

“To guarantee installation by November, we are asking for orders to be in by Wednesday. We will continue to sell bricks for years to come until each area is full, and we will dedicate new bricks once or twice a year,” he said.

Around 175 bricks have been sold so far, he said.

“The entertainment park is going to host several events a month during the summers. This will be a great benefit to the community and provide things for families to do in Jackson County. The Veterans Memorial will remind us of the sacrifice made so we can still do these kinds of things and live in a free country,” Chadwell said.

Events in the park will include monthly free concerts and movie nights, he said.

Chadwell said Mark Robertson of MESA Landscape Architects in Little Rock designed the park and memorial area, and the DRIVE Board decided to make the bricks into a fundraiser for the park.

DRIVE, a nonprofit organization, was formed in 2003 by Mayor David Stewart to focus on revitalizing the historic downtown area of Newport, Chadwell said.

Chadwell said the group has raised over $2 million to go toward downtown projects to date.

“Projects like this are what make our communities into our homes. We don’t just want to live in a place; we want to be at home in a place. This park is part of making Newport a little nicer home for all her citizens,” he said.

To purchase a brick, contact Jon Chadwell at (870) 523-1009 or director@newportaredc.org.

Staff writer Kayla Baugh can be reached at (501) 244-4307 or kbaugh@arkansasonline.com.

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