The meeting can be seen in its entirety on the City of Hope Facebook page. 

City Manager J.R. Wilson said “We’ve reached the point where we can’t safely keep people in those buildings,” Wilson said. 

This came after the board approved the decision to award Environmental Protection Associates of Little Rock, which submitted the low bid of $76,700, the contract to perform asbestos abatement of the buildings in preparation for their demolition to make room for a new Hope Fire Department headquarters.

Board members also heard from staff about a resident whose yard had been repeatedly flooded with sewage, an issue officials said stemmed from failures in aging wastewater infrastructure. That resident described a situation in which his yard had been covered by sewage for six days as city workers tried to determine a reason for the leak, waited for equipment and finally installed a diesel-driven pump on his property.  

Wilson agreed with the resident, who in his appearance before the board described the situation as unacceptable and said the city had already taken steps to address the immediate problem by bringing in the services of Bobo and Bain Construction to install a new waste water pipe to replace the clay pipe that was found to have collapsed. “Nobody should have sewage coming up in their yard,” he said. “That’s not something we can tolerate, and it’s not something we’re going to ignore.”

While emergency repairs are being made, the incident points up broader challenges facing the city’s wastewater system. “We’re dealing with infrastructure that’s old and failing in places,” Wilson said. “We’re responding as fast as we can, but these are the kinds of things that happen when systems reach the end of their life.”

The board then turned to a discussion and ultimately approval of a resolution that would transfer the City of Hope’s ownership interest in Southwest Arkansas Regional Medical Center to Hempstead County, contingent on voter approval of a proposed three‑quarter‑cent countywide sales tax in June.

Assistant City Manager Daniel Shelman, who presided over the meeting as Wilson sat in the audience, told the board the resolution was necessary to allow the county to levy the tax this year, which would be used to support the hospital’s building and equipment needs. “The hospital needs an additional source of revenue to help with certain expenses, maintaining the building, equipping the building, items like that,” Shelman said.

Attorney Sarah Giammo of Friday, Eldredge and Clark explained that the hospital’s property is currently jointly owned by the city and county, but the requirements of state law for the tax makes it more feasible to get on the ballot by June if the county owns the facility. “The best way to move forward with the levy of that sales tax is for the county to own the hospital [property] in its entirety,” Giammo said.

Giammo emphasized that the transfer would only occur if voters approve the tax and that the deed would include protections for the city. “There would be a reverter clause in that deed, which means that if the building and the property ever ceased to be used as a hospital, the city would get its portion back,” she said.

Shelman clarified that the proposed tax would be a three‑quarter‑cent countywide sales tax lasting 10 years. 

Giammo added that the tax could also be used to repay bonds if major repairs or construction were needed, though any bond issuance would require another ballot item later. “That would require going back to the voters to approve the issuance of bonds,” she said.

Board members questioned how the city might recoup its financial investment if the hospital were ever sold. Giammo said discussions had included provisions that would allow the city to recover $1.5 million in funds it had contributed beyond the county’s share, which is $1 million. 

Mayor Don Still said the goal was to protect the city while keeping the hospital operating. “The service to this city was keeping the hospital open,” Still said. “That’s what I was looking at.”

After discussion, the board unanimously approved the resolution authorizing the transfer contingent on passage of the sales tax by voters this June.

The board later approved an amended 2025 budget reflecting updated revenue and expenditure figures across city departments, including police, fire, sanitation, wastewater and the hospital.

Board members also approved participation in the Arkansas Municipal League’s Trauma Assistance Program, which will provide confidential counseling services for first responders who experience qualifying traumatic events.

Shelman said the program would help the city comply with Act 398 of 2025 while protecting employee privacy. “This program will have a third‑party administrator that will connect the employee to the counselor, so it remains confidential,” he said.

The board then voted to decline a previously awarded Transportation Alternatives Program grant for sidewalk improvements on Third Street, citing work capacity, competing infrastructure needs and financial pressures.

Shelman said city staff had consulted with the Arkansas Department of Transportation and were advised that declining the grant would not hurt future applications. “Without a doubt, [we can] decline it and come back in a year and reapply,” he said.

Wilson said the decision reflected the city’s current priorities. “We’ve had emergency projects come up, wastewater concerns, hospital issues,” he said. “If we can cut something out, we feel more comfortable financially.”

The board approved the recommendation to decline the grant.

Hope City Board members approved the inclusion of a $225,000 water slide as part of the planned aquatic and recreation park, a feature city officials said was intended to broaden the facility’s appeal and increase long‑term usage. The funds will come from a $750,000 contingency fund.  If other needs exhaust that contingency fund, the slide would not be purchased, but Wilson said this is not likely to happen.

During discussion, city staff explained that the slide would be incorporated into the overall design rather than added later, allowing it to be built more efficiently and at a lower cost than a future retrofit. Officials said the slide was viewed as a family‑friendly attraction that would complement the lap pool, leisure pool, and splash features already planned for the facility.

Board members emphasized that the slide was not a luxury item but part of a strategy to make the aquatic center competitive with similar facilities in surrounding communities. “If we’re going to do this, we need to do it right,” one board member said, noting that amenities like water slides often drive attendance and revenue.

The board also discussed and approved plans to locate restroom facilities nearer to the Splash Pad at North Side Park, a move officials said was driven by both practicality and public feedback.

A previous layout required families using the Splash Pad to walk a considerable distance to reach restrooms, creating inconvenience and safety concerns, particularly for young children. Placing bathrooms closer to the Splash Pad was described as a common‑sense improvement that would better serve park users.

Board members approved a placement so that the restrooms don’t interfere with parents watching their children at the Splash Pad from inside their parked cars having an unobstructed view. Memorial Day is planned to be the first day when the Splash Pad will open.

Before the meeting, a party was held to honor Steve Montgomery, former City Board of Directors member who retired from his seat at the end of last year.  Director Gary Johnson is filling his seat currently.  After being presented with a framed certificate and a portrait by Mayor Still, Montgomery thanked his former colleagues for their help over the years of his service to the city.