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Bike track a
learning tool
at Bentonville
school. ARKANsAs
PAGE 6B
A&mas Democmt&W Ouefte Copyright@ 2018, Arkansas Democrat -Gazette, Inc.
ARKANSAS ONLINE www.arkansasonllne.com MONDAY, DECEMBER 17, 2D1$
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ty tax to fund operations of a Millage rates vary among V "I support the proposed See SHELTER, Page I B I It has been a goal of Chief See RATES, Page 26
Downtown move
in UALR's future
New site a showcase for '30s mural
ALEX GLADDEN
ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT -GAZETTE
The University of Arkan-
sas at Little Rock is leasing a
downtown building to serve
as a meeting space and an ad-
ditional place to recruit stu-
dents.
The 4,365 -square -foot
space at 333 President Clin-
ton Avenue in the city's Riv-
er Market will hold "a grand
opening" on Jan. 16. People
can drop in to inquire about
enrollment at UALR, take vir-
tual tours of the campus and
buy Trojans gear and tickets,
UAIJR Downtown Director
Ross Owyoung said.
The facility also showcases
Joe Jones' mural The Struggle
in the South, which focuses
on lynchings, sharecropping
and coal mining, highlighting
the atrocities associated with
each. awyoung said he thinks
the mural will open conversa-
tions surrounding Arkansas'
past related to race.
]ones created the mural in
1935 at The Commonwealth
College in Mena. After the
college closed in 1940, people
used the mural as material to
build two closets in a residen-
tial home. Workers rediscov-
ered the mural in 1984 when
they tore down the house
and salvaged the mural. They
alerted UALF, and the univer-
sity stored the mural until of-
ficials
fficials had it restored in 2014.
"This space and this loca-
tion makes a big statement to
See BUILDING, Page 38
Fire displaces LR residents
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/MITCHELL PE MASILUN
People watch as Little Rock firefighters battle a blaze ea
East Seventh Street. Eight to 10 people were displaced
photos are available at arkansasonline.com/galleries.
Advocate
for river
joins suit
on farms
EMILY WALKENHORST
ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT -GAZETTE
An Arkansas environ-
mental group is one of eight
organizations to sue the
federal government over a
2016 decision that exempted
certain -sized animal farms
from federal loan policies
requiring environmental as-
sessments.
The groups, which in-
clude the White River Wa-
terkeeper, seek to end the
Farm Service Agency reale
change and reopen loan ap-
plications to environmental
assessments and public input
on those assessments before
farms are constructed
The lawsuit was filed Dec.
5 in the U.S. District Court
Arkansas Democrat:V. Ouette
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/JOHN SYKES JR.
A pedestrian strolls past the building in the River Market District
that is being leased by UALR and will be used as a site to recruit
students to the university.
Building
* Continued from Page 1 B
folks as they come into Little
Rock that UA Little Rock is
now a destination on their list
of places to go and experience
when they're in the capital
city, and the mural makes this
place historically significant,"
said Christian O'Neal, the vice
chancellor for university ad-
vancement.
Community members can
drop in to view the mural
or inquire about the,center's
services from U am. to 4 p.m.
Tuesday through Saturday.
"This is a billboard or
front door to UA little Rock,"
Owyoung said.
TL- r- -!I!-- ---11 ,- - -----I
History and Culture is housed
at the Arkansas Studies Insti-
tute in the River Market Dis-
trict.
The History and Culture
Center is a repository of letters,
legal documents, photographs,
maps, architectural drawings,
pamphlets, books, journals,
newspapers and other materi-
als that scholars and others use
for research.
UALR is not the only pub-
lic university that has set up a
spot in downtown Little Rock
this year.
The University of Arkansas,
Fayetteville opened a down-
town Little Rock location in
September, said Debbie Davis,
the associate director of the
UA Sam M. Walton College of
Business.
e MONDAY, DECEMBER 17,2018 * 38
Apaftment fire displaces tenants
STEPHEN SIMPSON
ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT -GAZETTE
Multiple people were dis-
placed after a fire late Sat-
urday at a downtown Little
Rock apartment complex,
officials said. -
Crews were called shortly
before 10 p.m. to a two-story
apartment complex known
as the Turner -Karcher
House, which is located at
503 E. Seventh Street, Capt.
Jacob Lear-Sadowsky of the
Little Rock Fire Department
said.
Firefighters were on scene
for several hours and much of
the downtown street was shut
down, officials said.
"We had rotating crews
working the scene to prevent
them from getting tired,"
Lear-Sadowsky said. "We got
there at 10 p.m., and the last
unit on scene left at 3:35 a.m.
because of smoldering and
they had to stick around for
the fire marshals to examine
the building."
Apartment complexes like
Turner -Karcher House are
difficult for firefighters to
manage because the building
is separated into various parts,
Capt. Doug Coffman said.
"It makes it difficult to get
to all the attic spaces," Coff-
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/MITCHELL PE MASILUN
Little Rock firefighters take a break early Sunday after respond-
ing to the blaze on East Seventh Street.
man said.
Lear-Sadowsky said 10
engine trucks, three ladder
trucks, a hazardous -materials
unit and four battalion chiefs
were called to the scene.
"We don't have any up-
dates on what caused the
fire as of right now," Lear-Sa-
dowsky said Sunday.
The structure had 13 apart-
ments, and eight to 10 people
were displaced, Lear-Sadows-
ky said.
"The property owners
have moved the tenants to
some of their other units,
so they aren't at the Red
Cross or anything like that,"
Lear-Sadowsky said.
The roof of the building
was completely burned out
and the structure sustained
severe water damage as well,
Lear-Sadowsky said.
The Turner -Karcher
House was built in 1879 and
was remodeled in 1975, Coff-
man said. It is part of the
MacArthur Park Historic Dis-
MORE CONTENT
arkansar On-ina
Photos from the scene
arkansasonline.com/1217fire
trict, an area that encompass-
es the oldest neighborhood in
Little Rock
The Arkansas Historic
Preservation Program web-
site said the area was listed
in the National Register of
Historic Places in 1977
A Quapaw Quarter His-
toric Homes brochure found
on the city's website states
that Judge Blakely Turner
built the Italianate frame
home for $4,000. The home
was bought by Andrew and
Minnie Karcher in 1912. An-
drew Karcher was president
of Karcher Candy Company
and the house became a so-
cial gathering place, accord-
ing to the brochure.
After years of neglect, the
house was on verge of being
demolished in 1974 when it
was purchased and rehabili-
tated as apartments, the bro-
chure said.
Information for this article was
contributed by Josh Snyder of
the Arkansas Democrat -Gazette.