Stories by AmyJo Brown

  • Bricks or mortar?

    Concrete walkways, patios and driveways can be beautiful and inexpensive - but for those worried about the environmental impact of their hard-scaping, there ar…

    by AmyJo Brown August 22, 2009

  • Pervious paving sticky to use, but rain soaks in

    For large projects - long driveways or parking areas, for instance - another environment-friendly alternative to traditional concrete slabs is permeable paveme…

    by AmyJo Brown August 22, 2009

  • City will dip into reserves

    The Sherwood City Council voted 8-0 Tuesday to appropriate $350,000 from its reserve fund to pay a settlement with its former ambulance provider, Arkansas Emer…

    by AmyJo Brown May 1, 2009

  • Mayor of Wrightsville repaying diverted funds

    Wrightsville Mayor Lorraine Smith illegally diverted $4,619.81 of city money into a personal account over four years - a discovery made during the course of a …

    by AmyJo Brown April 30, 2009

  • 5-acre lot-size cap for watershed fails

    A proposal to limit lot sizes to a minimum of 5 acres within the Lake Maumelle watershed was defeated by the 15-member Pulaski County Quorum Court on Tuesday d…

    by AmyJo Brown April 29, 2009

  • Fee raise sought in bid for county jail funds

    The Pulaski County Quorum Court is being asked to raise the cost of being cited for a misdemeanor or traffic violation to help raise additional money for the c…

    by AmyJo Brown April 28, 2009

  • LR housing board OKs settlement

    Little Rock's Housing Authority will soon take control of assets worth millions of dollars from the nonprofit Neighborhood Builders Inc., according to a settle…

    by AmyJo Brown April 24, 2009

  • Restitution from mayor a mystery in Wrightsville

    Wrightsville Mayor Lorraine Smith has repaid the city $2,619.81 - but elected officials in the small rural community in southwest Pulaski County say they have …

    by AmyJo Brown April 24, 2009

  • Car goes into lake; 3 kids die

    A 26-year-old mother tried but failed to rescue her three young boys after she drove a vehicle into Brewer Lake in rural Conway County early Sunday morning, ac…

    by AmyJo Brown April 20, 2009

  • Panels endorse plan to shield watershed

    Thirteen of the 15 members of the Pulaski County Quorum Court agreed Tuesday to greater environmental protections for land within the Lake Maumelle watershed i…

    by AmyJo Brown April 15, 2009

  • JPs set to take up limits to growth in watershed

    Pulaski County Quorum Court members will review today a proposed agreement with Central Arkansas Water that would put greater restrictions on development withi…

    by AmyJo Brown April 14, 2009

  • Bar has Easter worship on tap

    Shane Montgomery, lead pastor of a new church that offered an unusual Easter church service Sunday at the Revolution Music Room in Little Rock's River Market, …

    by AmyJo Brown April 13, 2009

  • Sherwood to settle suit on ambulance contract

    The Sherwood City Council voted 5-1 Wednesday to pay its former ambulance provider, Arkansas Emergency Transport LLC, $350,000 to settle a lawsuit being tried …

    by AmyJo Brown April 9, 2009

  • Sherwood sued over planned freeway site

    A developer who owns about 600 acres in the path of the proposed North Belt Freeway in northern Pulaski County is suing the city of Sherwood, alleging an illeg…

    by AmyJo Brown April 1, 2009

  • LR better off than most, mayor says

    The city of Little Rock navigated a troubled national economy better than most cities last year and is continuing on that path, Mayor Mark Stodola said Monday …

    by AmyJo Brown March 31, 2009

  • LR Eastside Lofts risking foreclosure

    A second historic Little Rock apartment building that the state helped finance in order to preserve low-income housing downtown has defaulted on its debt and i…

    by AmyJo Brown March 19, 2009

  • Pedestrian bridge on track for 2010

    Construction of a $5 million pedestrian and bicyclist bridge over the Little Maumelle River in west Little Rock is planned to begin as early as late summer and…

    by AmyJo Brown March 18, 2009

  • Thousands in LR embrace the race

    Gripping cups of coffee and signs that shouted encouragement - including at least one "Run, Forrest, Run," reference - family and friends of the more than 6,00…

    by AmyJo Brown March 16, 2009

  • O'Brien says records edited, on Web again

    Pulaski County real estate records pulled off a county Web site last year over privacy concerns are back online with information such as Social Security number…

    by AmyJo Brown March 12, 2009

  • Sales begin for King license-plate decals

    A special license-plate decal meant to raise money for the Arkansas Martin Luther King Jr. Commission went on sale Wednesday at the state's Office of Motor Veh…

    by AmyJo Brown March 12, 2009

  • Sheriff gives JPs tour of old jail

    Repairs being made to the old Pulaski County jail are nearly complete, and the jail is on schedule to house 160 inmates from the county's Work Release Center i…

    by AmyJo Brown March 11, 2009

  • Block 2 Lofts in LR for sale, owners confirm

    The Block 2 Lofts, a collection of three historic buildings containing 145 apartments and nine commercial spaces in downtown Little Rock that the state helped …

    by AmyJo Brown March 10, 2009

  • Improve logs on finances, county urged

    Pulaski County needs to better maintain its financial records and improve its software infrastructure, according to a 2007 independent audit of the county's fi…

    by AmyJo Brown March 4, 2009

  • MLK commission calls off fundraiser

    The Salute to Greatness Gala, an annual fundraiser for the Arkansas Martin Luther King Jr. Commission originally scheduled for tonight, has been postponed inde…

    by AmyJo Brown February 20, 2009

  • County urged again to hand out 3% bonus

    A proposal to provide Pulaski County employees and elected officials another 3 percent bonus will be back on the table soon, Pulaski County Justice of the Peac…

    by AmyJo Brown February 13, 2009

  • JP panel agrees to $1.35 million for jail beds

    A proposal by Pulaski County Judge Buddy Villines to open 160 beds at the Pulaski County jail received support - and the promise of $1.35 million - on Tuesday …

    by AmyJo Brown February 11, 2009

  • Now, even tax Collectors are singing the blues

    As Arkansas' county tax collectors prepare to open their books March 1, some fear that the tumbling economy may affect their ability to collect all the tax mon…

    by AmyJo Brown February 9, 2009

  • Sherwood pays $15,500 to state over sewage spill

    Sherwood paid a $15,500 fine to the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality on Thursday for violating federal and state water and air pollution laws in th…

    by AmyJo Brown February 6, 2009

  • Inman leaving job of election director

    Susan Inman, director of elections for Pulaski County, will retire from her position Feb. 27. Her resignation was accepted Tuesday by the Pulaski County Electi…

    by AmyJo Brown February 5, 2009

  • Sherwood signs pact for county fire district

    The mayor of Sherwood signed a contract Tuesday providing $798,376.67 to Pulaski County Fire District 5 for 2009, ending a delay that was meant to influence th…

    by AmyJo Brown January 28, 2009

  • LR land agency nails down acquisition policies

    A year after its creation, the Little Rock Land Bank Commission finalized its guiding policies and procedures Wednesday, clearing the way for development work.

    by AmyJo Brown January 22, 2009

  • Fire district's board agrees to new chief

    Over the objections of the mayor of Sherwood and the majority of the firefighters it employs, the Pulaski County Fire District 5 Board of Commissioners voted 3…

    by AmyJo Brown January 21, 2009

  • Arkansans heed Obama's call for volunteers

    Arkansans on Monday took up President-elect Barack Obama's call for service, adding their share of volunteer sweat and effort to the national observance of Mar…

    by AmyJo Brown January 20, 2009

  • Abortion foes make annual Capitol march

    A packed group of people more than a dozen wide and stretching at least six blocks marched along Capitol Avenue on Sunday afternoon and converged at the Capito…

    by AmyJo Brown January 19, 2009

  • No county fire chief decision yet

    The Board of Commissioners for Pulaski County Fire District 5 adjourned a special meeting Thursday night without making any decision after interviewing four ca…

    by AmyJo Brown January 16, 2009

  • County seeks end to lawsuit over vote

    Pulaski County officials filed a motion Wednesday in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas seeking to dismiss a lawsuit filed against the co…

    by AmyJo Brown January 8, 2009

  • Squirrel leaves 200 businesses in the dark

    About 200 downtown businesses lost power for three hours Sunday after a squirrel sparked a small fire at the Garland Avenue Substation behind the Little Rock M…

    by AmyJo Brown January 5, 2009

  • Panel sets hopes on inaugural festivities

    The state's Martin Luther King Jr. Commission is turning to fundraising to pay for a series of events and programs its leaders say are needed to repair the com…

    by AmyJo Brown January 3, 2009

  • Longtime Pulaski County JP looks back at term

    In 1988, when Ann McCaleb first ran for the District 8 seat on the Pulaski County Quorum Court, she rigged the race as much in her favor as she legally could.

    by AmyJo Brown January 1, 2009

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