Dec. 2-6, 2019 -- Weekly Snapshot

December 2-6, 2019

REPLENISHING CITY TREES

City of Hot Springs

Shade and fruit trees
being added to parks

A water oak tree was spaded
in late last month at Hill
Wheatley Park to provide
shade for a new picnic table
near the beach area. According
to Urban Forester Allen Bates,
there were a few dead trees
recently removed from the
park, and the City tries to
replenish trees when possible.
Bates is seen in the photo
at right unwinding the tree
branches as Tracey Bemis of
Bemis Tree Farm prepares his
truck-mounted transplanter for
the drive back to Little Rock.

In the next couple of weeks,

Bates hopes he and Bemis can

begin adding the scheduled

23 trees at Family Park.

These additions are also to

replace trees which were Urban Forester Allen Bates works on the recently-added water oak tree at Hill Wheatley Park.
cut per a Federal Aviation

Administration (FAA) safety order to remove hilltop trees exceeding the FAA's height requirement in the vicinity of the

airport. Pecan trees will be put at the lower level of the park and will add shade for the volleyball area. Shorter fruit trees

will be put on the hill, and will include apple, pear, pawpaw, fig and persimmon. Bates said disease-resistant varieties

have been selected to minimize spraying.

At least five fruit trees are also scheduled to be added at the new David F. Watkins Memorial Tunnel Park as a part of the
landscaping plan. Four oak trees will also be spaded in there, including a Shumard oak as the memorial tree.

DForIethNea AYateNs, DCireEctor

September is fourth-straight month of revenue increases

The City's sales tax for September was up 10.35% over September of 2018, in what was the fourth-straight month of
revenue increases. The 2019 total so far is up 5.07% from 2018. The September Sales Tax Worksheet is on the following
page.

Weekly Snapshot Page 2

Finance continued from previous page...

Compared to 2019 Budget Compared to 2018 Actual

Month Budget Actual Over (Under) 2018 Actual Actual % Inc(Dec)

April 1,085,271 1,300,352 215,080 1,057,765 1,300,352 22.93%
May 1,144,810 1,150,161 5,351 1,154,678 1,150,161 -0.39%
June 1,226,734 1,260,250 33,516 1,176,886 1,260,250 7.08%
July 1,203,827 1,240,267 36,441 1,124,782 1,240,267 10.27%
August 1,117,704 1,200,831 83,127 1,103,785 1,200,831 8.79%
September 1,075,895 1,165,672 89,777 1,056,309 1,165,672 10.35%
Total 13,606,778 10,462,262 335,155 13,318,300 10,462,262 5.07%
YTD 10,127,107 335,155 9,957,392 5.07%

PAAnRthoKnySWh&ittingTtonR, DAirecItoLr S

Amphitheater stage taking shape at Watkins Parks

Phase 2 construction is in full force at David F. Watkins
Memorial Park with excavation work continuing for what will
be the amphitheater. Pictured is the area where the stage for
the amphitheater will be placed across the exposed creek from
the seating levels. This neighborhood park in the Park Avenue
community is scheduled to be open in late spring 2020.

P L A N N I N KGath&y SelDlmanE, DVireEctoLr O P M E N T

Before-and-after photos

Below are before-and-after photos of structures in the city for which owners received notices to repair or remove.

Before Before Before

After After After (still in progress)

The structure at 503 Beard Street has a new owner The structure at 331 Cooper Street was condemned The structure at 114 Ozark Street was purchased on
who pulled a building permit for $20,000 in repairs. by the Board on Sept. 9. The structure was razed and back taxes and the new owner pulled a building
removed by the City on November 13. permit in August to start renovations.

Weekly Snapshot Page 3

P U B L I CAaIroNn StFreeOt, DRireMctor AT I O N

December employee newsletter published

The December edition of "Heart of Hot Springs" previews the holiday
season and features three recent Hot Springs HERO recipients, including
the cover story on Denise Watson's efforts at the Animal Services Shelter.
The two other recent HEROs are Simuel Jones and Jeffrey Sledd, and
more information on their recognition is below under Solid Waste. The
newsletter is available online at www.cityhs.net/newsletter.

Denise Watson is
featured on the cover

of the December
edition of "Heart of

Hot Springs."

S ORaLndyIADtkinWson,ADirSectTor E

Sledd and Jones earn HERO award

Recent Hot Springs HERO recipients Simuel
Jones, left, and Jeffrey Sledd, third from
left, are presented their HERO certificates
by Solid Waste Director Randy Atkinson
and Residential Manager Tonya Burrough.
Jones and Sledd were on their Earth Angel
Recycling route on Nov. 21 when they
witnessed a disabled citizen get struck by
a vehicle, knocking him out of his chair as
he was crossing the road at the intersection
of West Belding Street and Central Avenue.
Jones and Sledd immediately pulled over,
helped the man back into his chair and waited
with him until emergency responders arrived.

To find out more about the Hot Springs HERO award or to nominate an
employee who has gone above and beyond, visit www.cityhs.net/hero.

A N I MChAris LLackSey,EDRirecVtor I C E S

Animal Services Home for the Holidays event set for December 13

Animal Services' 2nd Annual Home for the Holidays, which will be from 6-9 p.m. on Friday,
Dec. 13, at the shelter at 3019 Davidson Dr., promises to be even bigger than the inaugural
event. There will be half-price adoptions for dogs and cats, and Lackey hopes that more find
homes this year than the impressive number of 22 adoptions accomplished at the 2018 event.
Guests will also enjoy hot cocoa and cookies, holiday decorations and the unveiling of a
special surprise.

Weekly Snapshot Page 4

P UDBenLnyIMCcPhWate, DOireRctorK S

Stormwater Sites of the Month - December 2019

Small Stormwater Site
Single Family Residence

112 Waters Edge Cove
Danna Strozyk (owner/stormwater site inspector);
Paul Strozyk (owner/superintendent), not pictured

Large Stormwater Site
Commercial Site

Hot Springs Junior High School
701 Emory Street
Dr. Stephanie Nehus (superintendent of Hot Springs
School District), left; Harold George (superintendent/
stormwater site inspector), right; Brian Hill (general
contractor of Hill and Cox Corp.), not pictured

MUonTty LIeLdbeIttTer,IDEirecStor

Divisions collaborate on
water tank work

Water Distribution crews assisted

Water Production personnel over

the last couple of weeks to drain,

clean and inspect the Woodmere

and Belvedere tanks. This coming

week, the Oak Grove, Highway 70

West and Crystal Springs tanks will

be taken offline one at a time for

cleaning and inspection. The other

four tanks in the

system – Holly

Street, Music

Mountain and

Twins 1 and 2

– were cleaned Workers clean the exterior of the Belvedere tank, above left, and inspect the inside, far left. Above right, workers
in 2016. In clean the Woodmere tank.

preparation for installation of mixing systems, they will be re-inspected using an underwater drone to

evaluate and document the overall condition of the interior walls, floor, roof, inlets, outlets and vents.

Chili Cook-off on December 9

Enter your best pot of chili and/or come enjoy "all you can eat with the fixin's" for a donation to benefit the City's
Christmas families at the 11th Annual Hot Springs Utilities Chili Cook-off. The event will be from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Dec.
9, at 749 Adams Street. Check-in for chili entries is no later than 10:30 a.m.

Each chili will be judged on five criteria: aroma, texture, color, taste and aftertaste/bite. Award certificates will be given
for Best Overall, Second Place and Third Place.

Weekly Snapshot Page 5

E NGaryGCaIrnNahaEn, CEityREnIgNineeGr

Painters working
day and night on
Cornerstone tank

The painting crew from
CB&I was busy this week
using sky lifts and stencils
after dark to begin the water
feature on the new storage
tank behind Lowe’s and the
Cornerstone Marketplace.
At night, the painters use a
digital projector to light up
the exterior of the tank, as
seen in the left photo, so they can trace the parts of the mural to be painted the next day, seen in the right photo. This will
continue until the mural is complete on the cone section of the tank. The mural is scheduled to be done sometime around
Christmas, depending on the weather.

Departments prep for building delivery

Many City departments have
contributed to improving access
to the new switch gear site at
the Ouachita Water Treatment
Plant along Cozy Acres Road in
preparation for delivery of the
switch gear building, which should
arrive sometime during the week of
Dec. 9-13. The Street Department
sent crews to clear tree limbs lower
than 17 feet from the ground, seen
in the photo at far right, to allow
passage of the building, which
measures 14-feet wide, 60-feet long
and 16-feet high. The Water Department gathered up steel plates, seen in the photo at left, for use in protecting the critical
mains that run underneath Cozy Acres Road from the weight of the building, which is nearly 100,000 pounds. The Sewer
Department provided the manpower and equipment to install the plates, while the Street Department provided a cold
mix for holding them in place.

Weekly Snapshot highlights some of the recent projects from the various City of Hot Springs departments
and is part of the City’s efforts to broaden its communications with the public.

[email protected] • City of Hot Springs Public Information Department • 501-321-6806
www.citysh.net