EL DORADO -- Speaking engagements during stints as CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and chief operating officer of Marvel Comics often exposed Terry Stewart to citizens and politicians with big plans for their small towns.
Stewart, now serving as CEO and chairman of the board for El Dorado Festivals and Events Inc., could quickly ascertain whether or not their vision was going to work.
"I'm talking to somebody who has formulated a fabulous plan; it's unbelievable," Stewart said during a recent chat in downtown El Dorado. "But they have no money. And they ain't going to have any money."
Lack of funding is hardly a worry for Stewart as he oversees the creation of an $80 million arts and entertainment district covering six blocks in downtown El Dorado, a south Arkansas oil and timber town of about 18,000. These days Stewart has access to vision and capital as he prepares for a multiday grand opening for the district in September.
More than $65.5 million has been raised or pledged so far. Money for the district is coming notably from the state of Arkansas, the city of El Dorado, Murphy Oil, Murphy USA, the Murphy Foundation, Deltic Timber and the Walton Family Foundation. Individual donors also are helping bankroll the project, which began with a 2011 study on improving quality of life in El Dorado.
Phase I of the plan calls for an outdoor amphitheater with seating for 1,200 and and a total capacity of about 8,000. A farm-to-table restaurant and 2,500-seat performance hall will be located in the Griffin Auto Building. A 1.5-acre children's "playscape" with a half-acre splash pad are also part of Phase I, along with residential quarters for visiting performers.
These are no longer just plans on paper. Construction is ongoing. Steel has been erected for the amphitheater. Crews are working daily on rehabbing the 100-year-old Griffin Auto Building, located at the corner of South Jefferson and Locust.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson pledged $5 million in state money during an October appearance in El Dorado. A spokesman said Hutchinson is using money from the state's "rainy day fund" to assist with the development.
Much of the construction and rehab work is being done on historic properties, giving El Dorado Festivals and Events access to $12 million in state and federal tax credits.
Phase II, scheduled for a 2019 completion, will include the renovation of the Rialto Theater into an 800-seat venue geared for live music, Broadway productions and the South Arkansas Symphony Orchestra. The former McWilliams furniture building is slated to be a 10,000-square-foot art gallery.
Chief Operating Officer Austin Barrow, an El Dorado native who swore he'd never move back, is aware of how outlandish it all sounds. By the time the plan is fully executed and additional improvements are carried out by the city, Barrow figures the price tag of it all will be closer to $100 million.
"It's audacious. People have called it crazy," Barrow said. "I'd say any idea that doesn't start at crazy probably isn't worth your time because somebody has probably already done it. And then who cares? Our board is working to change the outward appearance of this small town, but we're also adjusting the cultural landscape of what it means to live in El Dorado."
Talk of "adjusting the cultural landscape" likely sounds familiar to Arkansans who witnessed changes in Northwest Arkansas. Alice Walton's Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art has been credited with transforming Bentonville into a nationally recognized arts and dining destination.
What El Dorado is carrying out with its largely performance- and festival-based plan is hardly an apples-to-apples comparison to Crystal Bridges, but the Bentonville boom provides a handy reference.
Murphy USA Board Chairman Madison Murphy, also a board member for Deltic Timber and Murphy Oil, created El Dorado Festivals and Events in 2011.
Barrow said El Dorado Festivals and Events is working with developers on building an approximately 100-room hotel located within walking distance of the performance venues. A conference center, built with local sales tax money, recently opened on the campus of South Arkansas Community College.
Stewart, who is on the board for Austin City Limits in Austin, Texas, sees El Dorado as a future festival and live performance destination. Achieving that will spur growth in the town.
"It's pretty well proven that arts and entertainment and culture can be the anchor for economic development," Stewart said. "This is a bodacious, larger-scale attempt at doing it."
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