SPRINGDALE — The city could soon own a historic house.
Mayor Doug Sprouse, in his state of the city address Tuesday, proposed the city purchase Rabbits Foot Lodge, a house which once belonged to former Sen. J. William Fulbright. The purchase would include 40 acres around the lodge, Sprouse said. The price is still under negotiation, he said.
At A Glance
Council Action
Springdale’s City Council met Tuesday and approved:
• Naming Mike Morganthaler to the Public Facilities Board
• Tabled razing of a structure at 413 W. Center St.
• The donation of 6.2 acres of land on Don Tyson Parkway from JHT LLC, the Tyson Family and Tyson Foods for the relocation of Fire Station No. 2.
Source: Staff Report
The purchase would fit in with property already owned by the city used for recreational purposes, Sprouse said.
"It's a unique opportunity and a unique house," Sprouse said. "The property is surrounded on three sides by J.B. Hunt Park, the Razorback Greenway and Lake Springdale."
Sprouse proposed taking the money for the purchase, if approved, from the city's park land fund. The park fund, reserved from the city's Capital Improvement Program money, has $1.59 million, said Wyman Morgan, city director of administration and financial services.
The acreage could be used for park purposes but the use of the lodge has not been determined, Sprouse said. It could be rented out for conferences or retreats, he said.
The building, described as two-story log Ozark mansion, is on the National Register of Historic Places. It was built in 1908 with Fulbright purchasing the house in 1934, while he was a lecturer at the University of Arkansas law school, according to the historic register application. He was named president of the university in 1939.
Fulbright was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives for a term and then to the Senate. He sold the house after he moved his family to Washington, D.C., according to the application. He was a senator for 30 years.
Springdale will also be in a state of construction of all types throughout the city, Sprouse said, including streets, fire stations, parks and other improvements to its infrastructure.
"Construction will be everywhere," Sprouse said. "It will be the foundation for continued development."
Both the Don Tyson Interchange and the Walmart Supercenter began construction in 2013 and will be completed in this summer, Sprouse said. Improvements and the extension of 56th Street will connect these developments, he said.
The city is working on other projects that would extend 56th Street from Wagon Wheel Road to Johnson Mill Boulevard in Johnson, Sprouse said.
Purchase of street right of way is under way, said Alan Pugh, city director of engineering.
That extension would connect five interchanges with a north-south street running parallel to Interstate 540, Sprouse said.
Downtown revitalization has been a goal for years, Sprouse said, but only gained momentum recently.
"It's been a dream for some and a joke for others," Sprouse said. "It will start being a reality this year."
The Razorback Greenway, a 36-mile trail running from Fayetteville to Bentonville, will be under construction through the downtown, Sprouse said. Construction is under way on two sections of the trail in Springdale, with two other sections under bid, said Patsy Christie, city director of planning.
New parks in the northwest and southeast corners of the state should start construction this year, Sprouse said. Land for the relocation of two fire stations and the adding of an another one has been selected, he said, with construction expected to be finished in 2015.
"We are laying the foundation for the future," Sprouse said.
NW News on 02/26/2014