The Little Rock Board of Directors approved two up-to-date entertainment districts, annexed land for an industrial development project and set the city’s property tax rate at its meeting Tuesday.
One of the entertainment districts will encompass the entire Breckenridge Village property, allowing people to drink alcohol there seven days a week, from 11 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., until the end of the year.
Breckenridge Village has been in the midst of major renovations since the shopping center was hit by the March 31, 2023, EF-3 tornado that tore through parts of Little Rock, North Little Rock, Jacksonville and Sherwood.
Deluca’s Pizza, the popular Hot Springs pizza spot, opened a location in the shopping center on Oct. 2, and The Root Cafe and Flyway Brewing both have locations opening there soon.
The other entertainment district will be at Plaza Frida, a community event space highlighting Hispanic culture and traditions, but will only operate on the following dates from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.: Oct. 27 and Nov. 2, 16 and 30.
In 2019 the city board approved an ordinance authorizing the creation of entertainment districts, public zones where people can move freely with alcoholic beverages they’ve purchased from bars or restaurants. The River Market, for example, has been an entertainment district since 2019.
Little Rock will annex 292 acres of land near the Port of Little Rock, according to another resolution passed Tuesday. Trex, a composite decking and railing manufacturer, is currently constructing a $400 million facility on the plot.
The board also approved the city’s property tax rate for 2025: 15.1 mills, unchanged from this year’s rate. This figure doesn’t include property taxes levied by the state.
Additionally, city directors authorized Mayor Frank Scott Jr. to enter a letter of intent with the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation and Bernhard Energy, a national engineering firm, to create a “sustainable energy district” in Little Rock.
Scott said the letter would allow the city to enter talks with the Clinton Foundation and Bernhard “to figure out ways to optimize our assets in an energy efficient way.”
Other notable agenda items approved include $170,000 to upgrade the city’s school zone flashers and $75,000 to continue funding the Pulaski County Imagination Library, a local affiliate of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, a program started by Parton in 1995 that sends free monthly books to children up to the age of 5.
Ward 5 Director Lance Hines, who missed last week’s agenda-setting meeting, and Ward 2 Director Ken Richardson were absent.
On Aug. 1, the city of Little Rock announced that Richardson, who hasn’t been to a board meeting since May 14, is in the hospital recovering from “life-threatening” surgeries.
Richardson is on track to fully recover, according to the August press release, but it’s not clear when he will return to his public duties.
For more information on the city board and how it works, check out our cheat sheet.
