The Pine Bluff Urban Renewal Agency met last week to discuss several projects planned to get off the ground in 2023 including the go-kart track, the Sixth and Main Project and the Neighborhood Housing project.
Urban Renewal Executive Director Chandra Griffin said approximately $6.6 million in carryover is designated for these projects. With most of the land already acquired by the agency, last year the agency purchased an additional lot that would give them both sides of Convention Center Drive on East Sixth Avenue.
A developmental agreement for the Sixth and Main Street Housing Project, with architectural services by Taggart Architects, is about 80% complete according to Griffin, who plans to call a special meeting once the final agreement is drafted.
"Funding-wise we are ready," said Griffin. She said the 26 multifamily units will consist of 1 and 2 bedrooms facing Sixth Street. The property will feature a courtyard in the middle with private wood planks and parking in the back. Griffin said the units will run from Convention Center Drive to Georgia Street.
"It looks really good," said Griffin, describing the renderings of the units. "Hopefully the same thing can be duplicated across the street in the future."
Agency president Jimmy Dill expressed his excitement after hearing the description. "We are not about just tearing stuff down. We are also about building," he said. "I like what I'm hearing. I'm really excited about the housing."
Progress for the Sixth and Main Street Restaurant and Retail Development transforming a two-block area from Sixth Avenue and Main Street to State Street has made some progress as a memorandum of understanding with the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff has been negotiated.
UAPB owns a portion of the land on Sixth and Main Street but Griffin said the agency was able to secure the land through a lease agreement including the parking lot. UAPB's incubator is on the property and, according to the agreement, students would be able to utilize the parking lot to enter the incubator, which will be behind the food hall. The memorandum of understanding between UAPB, The Generator and Urban Renewal allows students to have internships and other partnerships and entrepreneurship.
The proposed project will upgrade the existing hardscape plaza with landscape and water features; renovate the existing storage building into a food incubator and restaurant; create rooftop dining and an outdoor deck; renovate the existing bank branch into a retail incubator; build an outdoor amphitheater at an existing undeveloped lot; and improve existing parking lots.
According to the lease agreement, any improvements to the property will become the property of UAPB. The lease, according to officials, is a five-year continuous lease up to 15 years.
Commissioner Kirby Mouser had a concern about what would happen when the 15 years were up, considering tax payer's money was being used to fund the project.
The only workaround, according to the PBURA attorney, would be that UAPB would have to pay the agency the market amount for the improvements.
"I want to make sure I understood the lease," said Mouser. "I don't know if that's an issue for us to use tax dollars."
Commissioner Lloyd Franklin Sr. said he believes in the longevity of the agreement and does not see a problem with it and that it would improve the growth of the incubator.
Griffin said the growth would be for students to learn and sustain their businesses.
A motion was made and approved to move forward with the agreement,
There has been a delay in the ALICE area model homes. After a meeting with Fay Jones Architecture, Griffin said the commercial transitional style windows in the home would be $40,000. Without even having a total for the entire construction of the home, the windows alone would be over budget.
"We're meeting Thursday at The Generator on-site to go through and make some changes to get the cost down," Griffin said, adding the PBURA will go back to the drawing board.
The go-kart track has also received some minor adjustments to the inside of the building, according to Griffin. Last week Griffin met with Level 5 Architecture and East Harding Construction to go over the construction plans.
The contract for the go-kart track entertainment facility at 2100 E. Harding Ave., where the Admiral Benbow Inn once stood, was renegotiated previously as some areas were downsized by scaling back on the miniature golf and kitchen equipment.
Griffin said the arcade section will now be moved over, adding a partition so party rooms can be divided. Griffin hopes to have the construction documents by March.
In other business, the PBURA will work with code enforcement to remove blight with a goal of 50 structures. Mouser felt progress toward the goal was not made, considering it was lower than in years past. He also was concerned about the construction of a new Pine Bluff High School.
"If they put it back downtown like we want it to, there are structures over there that need to be removed," he said. "That's one of the issues that keeps being brought up when people want to keep the school where it is."
Griffin said she had expressed that area needs to be the focus and even constructed an area map of targeted homes adjacent to the high school that fall in the Urban Renewal area.
"That whole area two or three blocks all the way around needs to be a focus," said Mouser, who added the pushback to rebuild in that area concerned deterioration, crime and security.
Griffin mentioned the law allows the fire and police chiefs to declare what would be a nuisance or danger, for immediate removal.
"They have the authority to move on it right then," said Griffin. She added there has been a meeting discussing this initiative in the past. "The stipulation for them is they can't leave the sight. Urban Renewal could remove it."
Griffin said there were concerns that the focus would be on Urban Renewal areas only and code would need to be enforced citywide.
Mouser said he didn't have a problem with Urban Renewal operating outside of its areas. Griffin said the cost would be minimal compared to now.
Mouser wants to look at an expedited process through a resolution that doesn't have to go through the City Council. He proposed that Urban Renewal extends the offer that its equipment and personnel be used to do the removal if the fire and police chiefs will exercise their authority inside and outside the urban renewal area, and have the chiefs sign off on the resolution acknowledging the program.
A motion was made and approved.
Griffin said with so many of the homes being over 50 percent burned, this can help with removing them quickly.