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Hardy RV Park Under New Management
We are excited and happy to report that the prior problems in the past that were reported here in regards to the local Hardy RV park have been corrected. It is nice to see the park cleaned up, neat and ready for campers! In a turn of events the area volunteer firefighters have agreed to take over the management of the park and its upkeep.
Our community has always pulled together so this appears to be just another example of not only volunteers from the fire department pulling together but also working on hopefully generating some funds to help purchase future needed equipment.
The Great ShakeOut – Earthquake Drill
The Great Central U.S. ShakeOut is an eight-state drill spanning much of the central United States. The ShakeOut is being organized for April 28th at 10:15 a.m. Already over 1 million people are expected to participate. Why is it important to do a Drop, Cover, Hold On drill? As with anything, to react quickly you must practice often. You may only have seconds to protect yourself in an earthquake, before strong shaking knocks you down–or drops something on you.
We all must get better prepared for major earthquakes, and also practice how to protect ourselves when they happen. The purpose of the ShakeOut is to help people and organizations do both.
Civil Rights Complaint Filed on Two Men
LITTLE ROCK—Christopher R. Thyer, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced that Jason Walter Barnwell, age 37, of Evening Shade, Arkansas, and Gary Don Dodson, age 32, of Waldron, Arkansas, appeared today before United States Magistrate Judge Beth Deere for an initial appearance on federal civil rights charges.
Barnwell and Dodson were arrested yesterday on a federal complaint charging them with use of a destructive incendiary device in the course of a conspiracy to deprive a Hardy, Arkansas couple of their civil rights. In addition, each defendant was charged with interfering with the housing rights of the couple; with using fire in the commission of a felony; and with being a felon in possession of an unregistered destructive device. If convicted, the two face a minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of 40 years’ imprisonment and/or up to a $750,000 fine.
Wayne’s World – Tumbling Down
A Sharp County judge says a developer, Wayne Watkins, who returned last week from Mexico to face charges that he defrauded buyers of land in a subdivision must remain in jail until he comes up with $107,000 in cash.
Jonesboro television station KAIT reported that the cash-only bond for 63-year-old Wayne Watkins was set in a hearing Monday at Ash Flat.
Police arrested Watkins Feb. 21 at a Houston airport as he returned from Mexico, where he had lived for four years. Larry Kissee, Watkins’ lawyer, said Watkins was returning to see his seriously ill father, and knew he would be arrested on a 2007 warrant charging him with theft by deception.
Shake, Rattle and Roll
Okay, maybe just the shake and rattle! This past Sunday you might of felt a little tremor under foot. A 4.7 magnitude earthquake shook central Arkansas late Sunday night, and was felt as far away as Memphis. It was followed by a 3.8 magnitude temblor a short time later.
According to the United States Geological Survey, the quake was centered approximately 36 miles north of Little Rock, approximately 150 miles from Memphis.
Public Schools May Be Starting Sooner Effecting Tourism
LITTLE ROCK – The House on Wednesday voted 80-15 to approve a bill to give school districts flexibility on when to begin the school year.
HB 1099 by Rep. Homer Lenderman, D-Brookland, would allow public schools to start on or after the Monday of the week in which Aug. 19 falls. State law now requires schools to start no earlier than Aug. 19.
Rep. Kelley Linck, R-Flippin, spoke against the bill, saying it would shorten the summer break and hurt businesses that depend on summer tourism.
ARKAWARE.ORG – Citizens Rights To Information
We are excited to announce the creation of a new online site called ARKAWARE.ORG this site is dedicated to ALL CITIZENS in Arkansas that have experienced problems with local and state government in regards to FOI (Freedom Of Information).
The goal of ARKAWARE is to ensure that individual citizens are aware and educated in the rights that they have in regards to our Freedom Of Information laws within the State of Arkansas. Many support sites exist to assist news/media outlets, but we wanted a source for the individual citizens who too, need a place to go when they feel their rights to public records and access are being either hindered or outright denied. The online site will offer guidance and support to you in your quest for public information.
Data Backup – System Secure !?
In a recent story posted on the Mayor’s personal website, we noticed a story in regards to a incident with a power outage on Friday Jan. 21, 2011. In her story, the Mayor reported on the sudden outage due to a problem on the utility pole at the intersection of Woodland Hills and Forty Island Creek Bridge. This resulted in a loss of power at City Hall and at the sewage plant too. It was good to read about the quick response and plan of action of city employee’s in regards to getting the power back online and following a plan of action too.
Love Thy Neighbor
With Hardy being as small a town as it is with a population less than 800 we like to think our community is a loving and united one. We know from past catastrophic events such as recent floods and ice storms that our community quickly comes together to help each other. In viewing a news story today about a potential hate crime, it was very alarming and sad to see, that this happened here in our community to this individual. Luckily, no one was injured but the FBI was called and this will be fully investigated.
Arkansas Municipal League Winter Conference
With the start of a new term for our city leaders, it is nice to see that our Mayor and Recorder/Treasure were fortunate to be able to attend this years winter 2011 Arkansas Municipal League conference. The conferance was held at the Peabody Hotel/Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock, AR.
This three day conference provided many great work shops and training classes too. Some of the scheduled programs presented at the conference are listed below:
Jan 12th & 13th
- Managing your municipal organization
- General session on funding sources and assistance programs
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