The Hope Board of Directors passed a resolution in favor of Hope Baking Company receiving a refund of state and local sales and use taxes Tuesday night. The company needs the board’s permission as it applies to the Arkansas Department of Revenue for the Tax Back program, which is available to companies pursuing expansion projects that will add full-time jobs under the state’s Consolidated Incentive Act of 2003. 

The meeting can be viewed in its entirety on the City of Hope’s Facebook page. 

Hope Baking Company announced an expansion project January 11th which will cost $37 million and potentially add 266 jobs to its plant on 2700 East Third Street. The plant, owned by East Baking Company since March 2023, has been in expansion and hiring mode since it was purchased from Southern Bakeries. 

To qualify for the Tax Back program sales and use tax refund, the company and its expansion project must meet certain conditions specified in the Consolidated Incentive Act of 2003. These include the submission of a project plan “which clearly identifies the intent of the project, the expenditures planned, the start and end date of the project and an estimate of total project costs,” according to the Act. 

Hope City Manager J.R. Wilson said, “Needless to say, Hope Baking Company meets these conditions, but before they can make the application to the state, they must have an endorsing resolution by the local government authorizing that application.” He added that the company has the option of whether to submit resolutions from the city, the county or both entities. 

Director Trevor Coffee asked if the refund “carries through the expansion,” which is believed will take two years. Construction began on the project in late 2023. Wilson replied that the legislation said applications could be made for up to three years after the project. He mentioned that in the past at least one company had applied for the refund at the end of a project, but that Hope Baking Company was doing so early. That would be better for the city in that it would not be responsible for providing the refund all at once. 

“We'll be better prepared for this,” Wilson said.  “And we can do good planning next year that if we came up short on sales tax in one given year, we're just prepared with revenues set aside to protect us.” 

At that point Anna Powell, Executive Director of Hempstead County Economic Development Corporation came to the podium. She introduced Olivia Womack, Director of Business Development at the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, who, speaking to the board through an online connection, said, “It is a sales and use tax refund on construction materials, renovation materials, modernization materials and equipment.” 

Womack further explained, “In the state of Arkansas manufacturing equipment is already sales tax exempt. So this would cover other types of equipment that might be going into the facility. Based on the numbers that we've provided, the total estimate for building costs is less than a million dollars. And most of the rest of the balance of the expansion is in equipment that would likely fall under that manufacturing equipment [exemption] … And it is a four-year program from the time that the company begins the program.” 

Womack said she was happy to answer any questions. None were forthcoming. Mayor Don Still commented that “A lot of states are able to give cash money to businesses. This is just one way the state can help businesses to expand. This is definitely something we’ve done before.” 

At that point City Attorney Randal Wright read the resolution, which can be seen on page 16 of the City Board’s Agenda Documents for the February 20th meeting. The motion to approve the resolution passed by unanimous voice vote. 

In other business: 

·       Time was allotted for a public meeting on a potential capital outlay project funded by a sales tax but no one used the time to offer a comment.  One citizen did submit an idea in the Citizens Request portion of the meeting. 

·       Charitable Christian Medical Clinic was approved to build a 12 X 15 feet storage building behind its main building on 114 South Main Street on property owned by the city. The storage will also be used by The Call, a charity which helps assist local parents providing foster care. 

·       A resolution was passed proclaiming February to be Black History Month. 

·       The board inspected a financial report on the year 2023 presented by Hope Finance Director Cindy Clark. With Wilson, she explained specific line items and answered directors’ questions about particular expenses and income.  The report showed the city with $899,511.86 left in American Rescue Plan Act funds after spending from it in 2023 on cybersecurity protection, retirement payments, salaries and Social Security. Wilson said the upcoming project to use ultraviolet light disinfection at the city’s east wastewater plant and its purchase of a ladder truck for the Fire Department would come out of that fund this year.  The Street Department Fund showed a $7,500 overrun against its 2023 revenues, the Wastewater Fund showed a $66,854 overrun against its 2023 revenue and the ARPA fund showed a $96,559 overrun against 2023 revenue with the other funds (General, Sales Tax, Capital Outlay, Airport, Sanitation) ending 2023 with a total of $1,408,500.11 revenues unspent. Subtracting the overruns leaves $1,237,587. 

·       Executive Director of the Hope-Hempstead County Chamber of Commerce Christy Burns presented a report on the chamber’s efforts to promote local businesses over the past year. 

·       Powell returned to the podium to request the signing of an amended contract for services between the city and the Hempstead County Economic Development Corporation. The contract changes the frequency of reports the board would receive from HCEDC from once to twice a year. Powell also provided an update of what the corporation has been doing since June of 2023 when she took office as HCEDC’s director, including its efforts to bring new businesses to the area and help businesses already here. The corporation has hired a new office manager and program coordinator, Powell said. It will also add efforts to educate county residents on matters pertaining to drawing business here. She said about ten projects pertaining to recruiting new businesses have been done since June, with one landing Hope in the top three in consideration after visits from an unnamed organization’s top officials. Powell is also trying to make the organization’s database of local businesses more accurate and add to its success in drawing two new investors.  Improvements to the HCEDC’s building are also being planned in collaboration with the city, which owns the building and leases it to the HCEDC. 

·       When City Director Linda Clark commented that she was glad to know Powell was monitoring developments concerning lithium mining in southwest Arkansas, Powell said she had attended the Arkansas Innovation Lithium Summit in Little Rock late last week. “If they said southwest Arkansas one time they said it a million times,” Powell said. “It's truly our ticket. But the Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission has to get it right. And so as  a city, and as a county, as a community, we have to think about those things long term in preparedness, and J.R. and I are doing that as well as working with the Hempstead County Economic Development Board. So I encourage you all to really get into it and research. It's overwhelming. But it's so exciting for southwest Arkansas.” 

·       The board accepted the city staff’s recommendation to award a mowing contract for the grounds of City Hall to the low bidder, which was Silvey Lawncare of Roston for $4,650. 

In the City Manager’s Report, Wilson showed the board and the attendees a work-up of the exterior of the fire department headquarters proposed for Hope.  He said the runway safety project at Hope Municipal Airport will begin April 22nd.  Concerning the ongoing Sixth Street project, Wilson said he and Mayor Still met with principals involved in the project about the concerns of the board and would have an update in the next board meeting.  Due to a procedural error in passing the recent increase in waste, Wilson said a public meeting would have to be set up in the next board meeting and then a vote on the ordinance. 

Wilson also provided an itinerary on his upcoming travels and a vacation in August. 

In board questions, Director Coffee asked about markings on the part of North Hervey that rises above I-30 being confusing, which have drawn some citizen complaint. Mayor Still said he heard a complaint as well. Wilson said he would bring these to the attention of the engineer overseeing that area. 

In citizen’s questions, Alex Mendoza said that in considering capital improvements funded by a sales tax, the city should consider providing for volleyball facilities, which he said he knew there was interest in. He said Hope could host regional tournaments as well.  “I could easily get five or six teams from the Texarkana area,” he said.  Mayor Still said that basketball courts could certainly be used for volleyball events in a multi-use facility. Wilson invited Mendoza to fill in a survey and ask that his neighbors do so, too. 

The meeting adjourned at about 8:25 p.m.