'Appreciation lunch' to honor city staff
North Little Rock city employees will be honored as "hometown heroes" during a catered lunch Monday for their work during the recent flooding that affected several parts of North Little Rock.
The North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce will host the free "appreciation lunch" at the Burns Park Hospitality House, 402 W. Military Drive. The lunch won't be open to the public.
Employees from the North Little Rock police, fire, street, traffic, parks, electric, sanitation and administrative departments have been invited to attend. Mayor Joe Smith is to give a short talk highlighting the employees' efforts in the days before and during the flooding and then the cleanup work afterward.
The Arkansas River crested at 29.71 feet on June 5, the highest river level in the Little Rock-North Little Rock area since 1945, according to weather records. Low-lying neighborhoods, the downtown riverfront and almost all of Burns Park south of Interstate 40 were some of the areas affected by floodwaters.
Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield is to present a $5,000 donation to the city during the luncheon to aid in the cleanup process, according to a chamber news release.
Park Hill forum set to talk new design
A community meeting will be 4-7 p.m. Tuesday at Park Hill Presbyterian Church, 3520 John F. Kennedy Boulevard for community residents, business owners and property owners on the proposed engineering design for the Park Hill neighborhood along JFK Boulevard, part of the Park Hill Area Jump Start process.
Interested persons can drop in anytime during the time period. There won't be a formal presentation during the meeting, but drawings, maps and sketches will be available for viewing.
City engineers and Garver engineering and planning staff will answer questions and discuss plans with attendees. Comment cards will also be available to share opinions and ideas on the plans.
USS Razorback gets ready for July 4th
The sixth annual Fourth of July Fireworks Watch Party from the deck of the World War II submarine the USS Razorback will be held as originally scheduled, 7 p.m.-10 p.m. July 4, at the Arkansas Inland Maritime Museum, 120 Riverfront Park Drive.
Tickets are $10 per person and children 5 years and under will be free to watch the 36th annual Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's Pops on the River fireworks show. The fireworks will begin after dark from the Main Street Bridge.
Hot dogs, chips and soft drinks will be available for purchase at the museum, located on the river just east of the Main Street Bridge in downtown North Little Rock. The museum will be open for tours, but tours of the submarine won't be available during the event.
Tickets were to go on sale May 28, the first day of the museum's summer hours. Because of the recent Arkansas River flooding, the maritime museum instead was closed for three weeks starting May 28, causing ticket sales to drop from previous years, according to a museum news release. The museum reopened last week.
More information is available from the museum at 371-8320. The museum website is aimmuseum.org.
Metro on 06/23/2019