The first regular Hope City Board of Directors meeting of October, which can be seen in its entirety here, included a presentation on the upcoming Taste of Hope event, a report from the Beautification Committee, votes on several steps to get planning started on a wastewater project, airport decisions and declaration of a surplus sanitation truck. In City Manager’s report, J.R. Wilson announced Hope had been turned down for the second time for a state grant to help fund a splash pad. 

After the call to order, invocation, pledge of allegiance and the approval the last meeting’s minutes, item five was the presentation by the Downtown Network volunteer group’s Rebekah Moore and Southwest Arkansas Arts Council’s Jennifer Block on the upcoming Taste of Hope event which will involve 14 restaurants and eateries.  The event, which will include activities that involve the arts, musical performances and a speakeasy, is set to start at The Hub this Saturday, October 7 at 5:00 p.m. 

In Item 6, Marie Marquez, chair of the Hope Beautification Committee, reported on that group’s work. Yard of the Month is chosen in Hope from April to September. “We’re trying to make sure we include every area of Hope, and we go through every neighborhood. And we're always open to suggestions,” she said. 

The committee is also ordering flags and decorations for the holidays as well as overseeing flower beds on Highway 67. There will also be a focus on one of the town’s most important buildings during the Christmas holidays. “We are going to focus on City Hall this year,” Marquez said. “And we're going to put some lights and decorations out in front here.” 

The committee is also hoping to improve the appearance of entrance points to the town on the interstate and Highway 67 as well as plant trees along Hervey and Hazel to try to bring back the tree-lined appearance those streets once had. 

Marquez said the committee would like to gain more members who want to address the appearance of the town. Asked how many members the committee has, Marquez said seven, but only four regularly attend. “So all of these decorations are being put up by the very few people that we have. But we believe in what we do. We believe in the committee, and we want to work along with organizations and committees like Downtown Network, as we bring Hope up to where we want it to be,” she said. 

Items seven through nine pertained to getting a two-part wastewater project underway which would be funded by a loan of $3,448,000 from the Clean Water State Revolving Loan Fund Program administered by the Arkansas Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Division.  The board approved the loan offer July 18. 

In item seven, the board approved by unanimous voice vote the use of services from Spears Engineering, the only respondent to a request for qualifications run in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette last month. Spears has provided services to Hope for many past projects. The vote approved the use of Spears for both the dredging and overflow abatement projects. 

In item eight, the board accepted by unanimous voice vote the recommendation of Wilson to accept the services of Little Rock law firm Friday, Eldridge and Clark to act as Bond Counsel for the project. One other firm, Kutak Rock, responded to a request for qualifications fun in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette last month. Wilson and City Engineer Jeremy Stone reviewed the two firms’ responses and recommended Friday Eldridge. 

Item nine was the approval of a resolution allowing for Hope’s Mayor to act as signatory agent, apply for assistance from the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission, execute a bond purchase agreement at the city board’s approval and to allow for Hope’s City Manager to also act as signatory agent “to execute, for and on behalf of the City, all other documents and certificates required.”  The board voted unanimously in favor by voice vote. 

Item ten concerned the decision of the Arkansas Division of Aeronautics to allow the remainder of funds from a $150,000 grant to replace chain link fencing and two gates at the Hope Municipal Airport to be used to make more improvements to the airport to make it more secure. The board approved allowing the staff to make decisions as to what these improvements will be. Airport Supervisor Darrell Allen said these would likely be improvements of signage, the replacement of another gate and the installation of keypad entry locks in the airport building. City Director Ross asked that reports be made to the city board when these projects are being done. The motion to allow for this spending by the airport staff was unanimously approved. 

Item eleven was a vote on increasing the yearly cost of a two-year lease renewal for an area on city property near the airport fore use by the Arkansas Department of Public Safety—Division of Arkansas State Police. The cost would go from $600, which board members said had been the price for many years, to $1,200. The board unanimously approved the motion to raise the price, citing the costs it had incurred to improve infrastructure there. 

Item twelve was the approval by the board of declaring a 2016 Freightliner Commercial Truck with 125,000 miles that has been used for spare parts for surplus on the request of the Sanitation Department.  It will be placed up for auction. 

During the City Manager’s Report, Wilson gave the floor to Hope Police Chief Kim Tomlin who displayed the plaque awarded to her department for winning the Arkansas Association of Chiefs of Police’s Tier 1 accreditation, a distinction she said took six years of work and improvements and which had involved previous police chief Wilson as well as Tomlin. 

Wilson also presented the news that the city had not won its application for a grant from the Arkansas Parks, Heritage and Tourism Department for 50 percent of the funds that would have financed a splash pad. Asked during Citizen’s Questions by Marcia White what he thought caused the rejection, Wilson said he believed the city was still rated low because of its success winning grants for other projects over the past few years. 

Wilson also announced the creation of six committees to “help determine City needs for potential future capital projects to be considered by the Board of Directors,” according to the Agenda Information for City Manager’s Report.  Four committees would be of citizens: Aquatic/Recreation Center, Soccer Facilities Improvement, Softball/Baseball Facilities Improvement and Tennis/Pickleball Facilities Improvement. Two would be of city staffers: Other Park Improvement Considerations and Fire Department. 

Mayor Still said the splash pad would likely be among the projects considered in the committees, with the city likely to provide the funding for it.