Zoo theater plans to assist disabled
Upgrades to improve accessibility for people with disabilities are planned for the Little Rock Zoo's Civitan Amphitheater.
A $132,740 redesign will include improved viewing areas for guests and expanded opportunities for people of all abilities to interact with animals. The zoo hosts regular educational presentations on the amphitheater's stage.
About half of the funding is provided by an outdoor recreation grant from the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, with matching funds from the city of Little Rock.
Wagner General Contractors Inc. will be doing the construction work.
The proposed contract has been placed on the agenda for the city Board of Directors to vote on at its July 9 meeting.
Visitor bureau adds to marketing team
The Little Rock Convention and Visitors Bureau has hired Seth Eli Barlow as a content creator for its marketing and communications team.
Barlow, previously marketing director for a wine and spirits company, is a 2019 fellow at the Napa Wine Writer's Symposium and is a certified sommelier. His writing has appeared in Arkansas Life magazine, the Arkansas Times and AY Magazine, among other publications.
"Seth is a natural storyteller," Bill Fitzgerald, vice president of marketing and communications for the bureau, said in a news release last week. "His ability to draw people in and keep them engaged is a gift, and welcomed talent as the LRCVB continues to elevate our city as a great leisure and travel destination."
Walker Street plan fodder for forum
City officials will present plans for a project to reconstruct Walker Street during an open-forum-style public meeting Monday evening.
Residents in the area of Oak Grove Lane from Acorn Place to Valley Drive are encouraged to attend.
Representatives from the civil engineering division of the city's Public Works Department will discuss the project and receive public input.
The meeting will take place at 5:30 p.m. in the West Central Community Center at 8616 Colonel Glenn Road.
New name picked for literary festival
The Central Arkansas Library System has announced a new name and focus for its annual literary festival, now called the Six Bridges Book Festival.
Named for the six bridges that cross the Arkansas River, the festival will have a new focus: bridging communities and bringing people together by actively soliciting input from a variety of demographic groups, the library system said in a news release.
"We want to involve many people from our community in the selection of presenters and activities, so they know their reading interests and the stories that fascinate them are central to the festival," Central Arkansas Library System Director Nate Coulter said.
He said the system's goal is to draw a wider audience by "removing any barriers of perception that this event is only for highbrow tastes."
The four-day event was previously known as the Arkansas Literary Festival. The 17th annual festival will take place April 23-26.
More information about the festival is available by contacting Brad Mooy at (501) 918-3098 or bmooy@cals.org. The website is sixbridgesbookfestival.org.
City: Stop cursing or sit out meetings
Residents who use profanity or verbal attacks when addressing the Little Rock city board during meetings can now be barred from attendance for up to three months.
The modification to the city board's rules of decorum, which is not retroactive, was announced one week after frequent local government critic Russ Racop directed multiple expletives at Mayor Frank Scott Jr. when speaking during the allotted time for "citizen communication."
"I think we're all aware of how decorum was abused last week," Scott said during Tuesday's board meeting.
If an individual violates the rules of decorum after being barred once, he can be banned for up to a year, and not only from city Board of Directors meetings but also from any city meeting where public comments are accepted.
The new rules will be in effect when the city board meets next on July 9.
Metro on 06/30/2019