Leaders.Neighbors
P. 1
Vision 2017
Area communities see improvements,
annexations in the works for 2017
Juncition City
According to the mayor’s office, construction on the proj- ect is planned to begin in the near future.
Strong
Junction City is nestled along the Arkansas-Louisiana stateline, and stretches out to one county — Union — and two parishes, Union and Claiborne. The town
was created by the Arkansas Southern Railway Company and was incorporated on Feb. 21, 1895.
Although the two sides are separately incorporated, they share a volunteer fire department and the school.
A lot of projects were completed in 2016 for Junction City, and the plans for 2017 are even bigger.
During 2016, the city cleaned and refurbished the city water tank at the cost of $130,000.
They also reinstated their own police department and bought another patrol car for the reformed department.
During 2017, the city plans to resurface North Elm Street from Stateline Road to Wesson Road, East First Street, Hickory Street and a portion of North Plum Street that is east of the football field.
They also hope to include street improvements and resurfacing in other areas around the town.
A community auction will be taking place each month at the City Community Center.
Officials will also be installing a traffic speed warning device for people who are entering the town.
Other projects that Mayor Allen Simmons and the town’s council would like to complete in 2017 include installing new sewer lines in needed areas and the purchase of another pumper truck for the town’s fire department.
Huttig
Ahistorical sawmill town, Huttig continues this tradition even today. The Frost-Johnson Timber company purchased land and built the sawmill in
the early 1900’s. While it has changed hands through the years, it has remained a staple for the area.
Huttig has had a year of renewal in 2016, that will be con- tinued into 2017. The municipality received several grants to improve the town.
One of these grants gave the city $45,000 to help refur- bish the northside park. The city was also given $2.5 mil- lion to replace all of the waterlines and to put in a new well for the town. The town also received $250,000 to repave side streets in the city limits.
The town’s goal for the year is to complete all the proj- ects for which they have received grant money.
Huttig has also turned its focus to cleaning and improv- ing the appearance to the town. To accomplish this, the city has even hired two new employees.
The city was also awarded money to help remove asbes- tos from the old Huttig school. When the school was closed in 2008, the city was awarded the property. They hope to remove all of the asbestos in the school by the end of the year.
Felsenthal
The community of Felsenthal is surrounded by wooded areas that include the Felsenthal National Wildlife Refuge and the Beryl Anthony Lower
Ouachita Wildlife Management Area. Guests have said it’s like stepping back into the 1950’s because of its calm and peaceful atmosphere.
The year 2016 was a busy and productive year for the city of Felsenthal.
“We are trying to get our legal ducks in a row to clean up some properties here in Felsenthal that have produced recurring problems regarding vermin and, frankly, junk,” said Mayor Linda Newbury.
Now that the legal issues have been resolved, the city plans to act quickly. The parties involved have been warned repeatedly of the hazards their junk creates for the community.
The city also helped to host Breamfest in 2016.
“Despite high water — or maybe because of it — the fish showed up and the fun was on,” said Newbury.
There is also a new face for the Town Council. Ryan Eads stood up to take the position when a former council mem- ber decided it was time for her to leave the council.
The City Council is looking forward to several projects for 2017. The water well and town hall will be undergoing major maintenance.
The water well is in need of a power washing and a repainting with anti-rust paint. Because of how expensive this is, the town will be looking for grant money to help pay for the work.
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bringing more revenue and easier water access to
File Photo
Improvements: Smackover High School Baseball Sta- dium and Field as it looked on Jan. 25.
The town hall is also in need of a paint job, the wood work is beginning to crack and rot and some of the gutters and storm drains need to be added or replaced.
The project to make the town beautiful will continue in 2017.
“Money, as always, determines how much and how quickly we can do things here. We are hoping to put up a couple of ‘Welcome to Felsenthal’ signs, which will greet folks as they come into our lovely town,” said Newbury.
Smackover
the city. In the coming year, Strong officials have planned to finish the city gym and fitness center and to annex the Gardner community into the city limits.
The former water system, made with a combination of steel, cast-iron and plastic, was installed in the ’50s and recently the city had been losing more than 50 percent of its water, said Bill Gaunt, lead engineer for the replacement water system.
“It required a lot of additional assistance and mainte- nance to keep it going. It was just time for a new system,” Mayor Daryell Howell said.
Made of PVC pipe, the replaced water system was installed July 2016, providing water for about 500 people in the Strong and Aurelle communities.
Also, officials replaced traditional water meters with radio-read meters for every house and business within the city limits of Strong in addition to the Gardner and Fountain Hill communities, Howell said.
Similar to what the city of El Dorado has done, the radio-read meters are more accurate and don’t require a traditional water meter installed at the residence. The combination of the city’s inefficient water system and inaccurate water meters, caused people’s water bill prices to vary, while some weren’t even charged.
While updating meters “we found 40 people who weren’t being fined for their usage, which is a big problem,” Gaunt said. With the new water system and water meters, the city can focus on other projects that have been in the works.
Looking forward, the city has planned to begin phase two construction of a gymnasium and fitness center located on U.S. 82 near 9400. In 2015, phase one construction of the banquet hall was finished. In 2017, the gymnasium and fitness center construction are scheduled to be finished. Also, city officials will begin considering bids for the new facility and present its preferences to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Howell said.
“We also hope to complete the annexation of the Gardner community,” Howell said.
Located near Strong city limits, Gardner already shares a water and sewage system with Strong, but has been consid- ered independent from nearby cities. The motion to annex the community into Strong has been considered since the ’80s, and the city is planning on adding the community by July 2017.
“We have the survey done and all the city lines are drawn; we’ve gotten all the signatures. We just have to touch base with all the people in the community and present the names to the county for consideration,” Howell said.
Norphlet
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the early 1930’s the oil field production had declined
mackover was settled in the early 1830's and became one of America’s largest oil reservoirs by 1922, but by
dramatically.
Last year was a time of growth for the city of Smackover.
The City Council had all of the sewer lines replaced through the whole town. All pipes have been replaced and most of the pipes have been lined.
There are two portions that have yet to be completed due to environmental conditions. One area will be complete once the ground has had time to dry out and another will be replaced in the summer.
The city spent less than expected for the project.
The city’s baseball field got a well deserved face lift in 2016. They replaced the bleachers, put up a new score- board, a new backstop and dirt for the field.
The project cost the city around $50,000 to complete.
The city also purchased new body and dash cameras for the police department.
“With what is going on in the media everyday, this is important. That being said, we have four full-time police, and, since I have became mayor, I have never had anyone say anything bad about how our patrolmen treated them, but it’s better safe than sorry,” Mayor Bobby Neal said.
For 2017, the town will soon have a new sidewalk that will run from the school to the park.
As of their February business meeting, the council had decided to advertise for bids, and the project will soon be underway.
The city also hopes to continue to clean several areas around town in order to enhance the appearance of the whole town.
Calion
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new life into southern Arkansas. The town was
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new opportunities that could be gained with the wid-
reportedly named after Nauphlet Goodwin, but the Postal Department misspelled the name in 1891 when the post office in the town was established, and the name stuck.
The year 2016 was a working year for the city of Norphlet and the City Council made great strides into improving the town. The town was awarded $250,000 from the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department to improve the roadways in the town by paving them.
They also upgraded the waste-water system for the town.
They are upgrading the man holes, repairing old sewer lines and replacing 10 fire hydrants. This project cost the city $120,000. The City Council voted to purchase a new fire truck for $235,000 from Pierce Manufacturing, Inc. in 2016. The vehicle replaced the one that the city already had, which was donated to the Standard Umpstead Fire Department by the city. The goal for 2017 is to build indus- try in the town.
The council has been working hard to get the old Norphlet Chemical Plant ready to use by another company. They have an oil company that is interested and they hope that the state will have signed off and that the town will have a new lube plant by the end of the year.
They are also speaking with both Family Dollar or Dollar General in the hopes of opening a store in the area to help those that live in the community.
n the northern part of Union County along the Ouachita River, Calion is looking to the future and
ening of U.S. 167.
When the city was incorporated in 1921, the name Calion
was created from a combination of the names of the sur- rounding counties, Calhoun and Union.
The city was established as a sawmill town with the opening of Thomas’ Sawmill in the early 1900’s. While the sawmill is no longer in operation, the lumber industry continues to play a large part in the city’s economy. Calion Lumber Company, owned by Charles E. Thomas, grandson of the sawmill’s founder, continues to be the city’s largest employer.
Karen Evans, mayor of Calion, stated that she is look- ing forward to the many opportunities the expansion of U.S. 167 will bring to the community. For the past eight years, the city has been working toward providing their citizens on the south side of the lake with sewer services.
Our Leaders Our Neighbors
n 2016, Strong city officials have accomplished replac- ing its water system and residential water meters,
orphlet was established on July 27, 1923. It was one of several depots along the railway that brought
The City of Calion was incorporated on
January 2, 1921. Many changes have taken place since then, but as we look to the future, it might be nice to reminisce for a moment about how before the levee was built, the heavy rains would cause the city to flood. And then, there are probably a few “seniors” who can still remember when there was a huge oak tree that you had to drive around as you drove down Main Street.
Now, just as then, the City strives to bring changes and improvements to
make our community a more desirable place to live, work and play. We have two major projects that should be completed in 2017. We have received a $250,000.00 GIF grant to overlay Main and Mill Streets. This work will be done in early summer under the direction of Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department and Calion Public Works Superintendent Mark Martin. The other project is sewer service to approximately sixty-five households on the south side of Lake Calion. We hope to see construction begin on this long awaited project in the Spring.
The elected city officials for 2017 are; Mayor Karen Evans, Recorder Mary E. Martin, Treasurer Fran Hicks, Council Members Johnny Peppers, Bill McCorvey, Bonnie Warwick, Chris Walker, Chanel Hicks, Todd Parker and Joann Williams. Also serving the City is Fire Chief Danny Donahoe and the volunteer firefighters, and Public Works Department James Taylor, Allen Reddin, DeAndrea Harrell and Steven Ware.
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