Officials with the U.S. Marshals Museum at Fort Smith announced last month that they've hired CDI Contractors of Little Rock as the construction consultant for a planned 50,000-square-foot facility along the Arkansas River. That doesn't mean that construction is about to begin, mind you. Though almost $30 million has been raised, another $32 million is still needed for the museum to be fully funded. We're still a number of years away from the museum becoming a reality.
What Arkansans who read about the museum's fundraising efforts might not realize is that downtown Fort Smith already is being reborn. West Arkansas residents are rediscovering downtown Fort Smith, moving into the neighborhood and filling its restaurants at night. Mayor Sandy Sanders recently told KNWA-TV that additional retailers and entertainment facilities are expect to open downtown while "many more people are looking to live in downtown apartments."
Part of the credit for the renaissance must go to a nonprofit organization known as 64.6 Downtown. The name comes from the number of square miles in the state's second-largest city. The group's mission statement reads: "64.6 Downtown is committed to the revitalization of downtown Fort Smith and the riverfront. Downtown is our heart and soul, and a more vibrant and accessible downtown is better for all within the 64.6 square miles of the city."
Last September, the organization sponsored a mural festival titled The Unexpected. Artists painted large murals on the sides of buildings. Downtown became one large canvas as thousands of people from across western Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma showed up to watch. Steve Clark, owner of Propak Logistics, has invested millions of dollars in downtown renovations. He said one reason the festival was a success was because it's "not what you would expect in Fort Smith. ... You're beginning to see developers come in and purchase the old buildings, use the first floor for commercial and develop out the floors above for residential. We were using our blank walls as the canvas to paint our future."
This year's festival is Sept. 2-11. I recently was in the city to speak at a Fort Smith Regional Chamber of Commerce event. During dinner at Rolando's on Garrison Avenue downtown the night before the event, my hosts talked excitedly about the murals, which have provided new energy downtown and made it a more interesting place. Claire Kolberg, an Arkansas native, was the festival organizer. There were artists from Portugal, New Zealand, Ireland, Belgium, Brazil and elsewhere participating. The curator was a French-born artist named Charlotte Dutoit, the founder of the Life is Beautiful festival in Las Vegas, one of the country's largest street-art events.
A story in the magazine The Idle Class described the festival: "A team was assembled on the philosophy that beautifying public space creates opportunities for people to visit downtown, increases revenue and demand for vibrant local business, and attracts a demographic of young, passionate people to the area. The name Unexpected embraces the surprise of making Fort Smith a destination outdoor gallery."
Dutoit told the magazine: "When you start to see street art in an area, it's the sign that there are other things coming. It's a healthy marker of a vibrant community." Kolberg added: "What's good for downtown is good for all of Fort Smith. ... These are modern-day masters. To see a wall from conception to finish is nothing short of amazing. The Unexpected was a huge success, and it was moving to see people fall in love with downtown Fort Smith. I wouldn't change anything. The small, intimate feeling the festival had gave the spectators and the artists an opportunity interact with each other. Our goal is to continue to create vibrant spaces and places in downtown that will attract people to live, work and play."
Dutoit liked the fact that Fort Smith had a lot of old buildings downtown with blank outdoor walls. She also liked the city's rich history. "The fact that it was a border town and when you crossed the river, there was no law west--I find it fascinating and inspiring," she told The Idle Class. "I follow my dreams. I want the best project with the best arts, and I try harder."
Social media for the festival was handled by Street Art News, the best-known street-art blog in the world. Suddenly, art aficionados across the country were hearing about Fort Smith. John McIntosh, the 64.6 director, told the magazine: "Downtown Fort Smith is healthy, but I would say it's hungry for change. We have historic tourism opportunities, but I think the feeling among a lot of people is we can be more than that."
Not that Fort Smith has forgotten its colorful past. Far from it. In late April, the city unveiled a 2,500-pound monument in Cisterna Park of World War II hero William O. Darby on a motorcycle, making a "forward" signal with his right arm.
The monument was unveiled on the 71st anniversary of Darby being killed in action in Italy during the waning days of World War II. Darby is credited with organizing and leading the first corps of Army Rangers. A 1958 movie, Darby's Rangers, starred James Garner. Darby, a Fort Smith native, is buried at Fort Smith National Cemetery, his medals are on display at the Fort Smith Museum of History and his boyhood home is open for viewing.
Little Rock artist Kevin Kresse was selected to design and sculpt the monument, which provides yet another reason to take in the unexpected pleasures of downtown Fort Smith.
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Freelance columnist Rex Nelson is the director of corporate community relations for Simmons First National Corp. He's also the author of the Southern Fried blog at rexnelsonsouthernfried.com.
Editorial on 06/08/2016