In his 2021 State of the City address Thursday, Little Rock Mayor Frank Scott Jr. urged voters to approve a 1% sales-tax increase after an attempt to enact it last year was derailed by the coronavirus outbreak.
Additionally, the mayor said he planned to name a chief equity officer, called for redrawing the city's ward boundaries and said Little Rock's branding will "undergo a face-lift" with a new flag, logo, website and mobile app.
The State of the City address -- Scott's third since he was elected in a December 2018 runoff -- was broadcast virtually without the usual audience because of the pandemic.
A video package that preceded Scott's address incorporated taped interview segments with a number of residents who spoke about their experiences during the pandemic, as well as their perspective on life in Little Rock.
[Video not showing up above? Click here to watch » https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HQ6BSGv6GE]
Scott devoted a substantial amount of time to pitching what the increased sales tax would accomplish, stating that itwould enable the city to go beyond recovery.
"Time is of the essence as we position ourselves to emerge from this pandemic better than before," he said. "Little Rock can and will be the catalyst for the new South with a new sales tax comparable to our neighbors. Just one penny more [per dollar spent] will allow us to improve the quality of life for all of Little Rock."
Scott suggested the additional revenue would enable the city to recruit businesses more aggressively, expand early-childhood education, revitalize War Memorial and Hindman parks, increase offerings at the Little Rock Zoo with additions like a giraffe exhibit and create an affordable-housing fund.
The mayor had proposed the 1% sales-tax increase during last year's State of the City address. At the time, Scott explained the plan to city directors as a way to gain an estimated $50.5 million in annual revenue and floated similar ideas about using the money to fund park upgrades, public-safety initiatives and zoo improvements.
Shortly thereafter, Scott abandoned the proposal during a March 25, 2020, news conference, citing the economic uncertainty caused by the pandemic.
If voters approve the tax increase, once a designated 10-year, three-eighths-percent capital improvement sales tax sunsets at the end of this year, the total tax paid on most purchases in Little Rock would be 9.625%.
That figure includes the state sales and use tax rate of 6.5%, the 1% sales tax for Pulaski County and Little Rock's 1.125% sales tax for general operations, which represents the remaining city sales tax once the capital projects tax is phased out Dec. 31.
It's unclear when Scott will bring the proposed sales-tax increase to members of the Little Rock Board of Directors to seek their approval to send the initiative to voters.
Referring to physical and economic divisions in the city between north and south, Scott said the 2020 census presents the opportunity to redraw ward boundaries "to reflect the united city we strive to be."
"Instead of homogeneous wards with arbitrary boundaries like Interstate 630, I will propose wards that reflect the overall makeup of our city," Scott said. "And I'm asking the city board to ensure our wards look like microcosms of our diverse city."
Residents of Little Rock are represented by the mayor, who is elected at-large; three at-large city directors; and seven other city directors each representing an individual ward.
Additionally, Scott asked the city's covid-19 task force to shift its focus to a comprehensive plan for ensuring immunizations take place in all communities.
He also said he will ask city directors to create a health and wellness commission in an ordinance later this year to promote physical and mental well-being among residents.
Scott also proposed selling the city to the wider public with revamped branding and a 2022 festival featuring live music, investor conferences and panel discussions that he dubbed "LITfest: A Return to the Rock."
While he acknowledged the work of the Little Rock Convention and Visitors Bureau promoting the city, Scott said "it's time to rebrand our city and build a unique narrative that sells Little Rock as a place for short-term business and play, but also as a place to call home and build a family."
"I recognize that for many who already live here or those who reside just outside of the city, your perceptions have been shaped, in part, by misinformation and decades of inequities," Scott said.
Explaining the rationale for the new festival, Scott referred to Riverfest, the decades-old arts and music festival on the Arkansas River that was suspended in 2017 by its nonprofit organizing body.
Riverfest returned in 2018 in a different form but suffered from lower-than-expected turnout, and the festival was not held in 2019 or 2020.
Scott called on the tourism bureau as well as the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce to help start the festival.
"I've heard it too often from visitors: 'I didn't know Little Rock was this amazing,'" Scott said. "Well, yes, we really are. It's time that the world knows what we have to offer."