Bill puts Little Rock stadium under parks purview

Agency would oversee War Memorial

Legislation that would transfer the free-standing War Memorial Stadium Commission into the Department of Parks and Tourism cleared the Arkansas Senate on Monday.

The vote was 32-2 for Senate Bill 255 by Sen. Missy Irvin, R-Mountain View. Sens. Bryan King, R-Green Forest, and Keith Ingram, D-West Memphis, dissented.

In October, Gov. Asa Hutchinson proposed moving the independent commission to the Parks and Tourism Department. The Republican governor also proposed cutting general-revenue funding for the stadium from $895,171 in fiscal 2018, which starts July 1, to $447,647 in fiscal 2019, which starts July 1, 2018. The stadium was allocated $889,085 in general revenue in fiscal 2017.

SB255 would give the Department of Parks and Tourism "exclusive jurisdiction for the operation of the stadium ... known as 'War Memorial Stadium,' which shall be for the use of all the schools, colleges and universities of the state under the supervision of the department."

The members of the eight-member War Memorial Stadium Commission would continue to be appointed by the governor under the legislation, but its actions would be subject to the approval of the parks and tourism director.

The commission would be stripped of its financing authority under the bill. Irvin said the commission would instead go through the Arkansas Development Finance Authority for financing. If approved by the House and sent to the governor, the bill would become effective when he signs it.

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Ingram said the commission, chaired by attorney Kevin Crass of Little Rock, has "done a great job," and he's worried that the commission is going to be lost inside the Department of Parks and Tourism and be "neutered" like the Governor's Mansion Commission was last year.

Irvin said she disagreed with Ingram.

The Department of Parks and Tourism will bring "a full menu" of advertising and promotion for events at War Memorial Stadium and the commission's promotional efforts have lagged, she said. Irvin said Parks and Tourism will expand the number of events at the stadium.

Irvin noted that department Director Kane Webb attended a conference last week to learn more about stadium operations.

Afterward, Webb said he and commission Director Jerry Cohen attended the annual meeting of stadium managers from across the nation in Huntington Beach, Calif., for "swapping ideas, best practices, future issues, etc."

Hutchinson has pledged to use his discretionary funds for the feasibility study by a nationally recognized stadium consultant to make recommendations on needs and opportunities for the structure, which opened in 1948 in Little Rock. Two companies have submitted proposals for state officials to consider.

Sen. Larry Teague, D-Nashville, said that he doesn't care who runs War Memorial Stadium as long as whoever runs it takes care of it for veterans.

A Section on 02/14/2017

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