By KENDALL OWENS
T-H Staff Writer
Regional efforts to land a Toyota truck factory in Crittenden County may have failed earlier this year, but according to Arkansas State Department of Economic Development Director Jim Pickens, the cooperation shown may provide dividends to Eastern Arkansas in the long run.
Pickens, along with individuals from the Memphis Area Chamber of Commerce and several city and county governments from throughout the area, met last week in West Memphis to discuss the Toyota project as well as continuing efforts to bring an automobile manufacturer to the area. According to Pickens the regionalization shown in last year's project has shown a willingness from throughout the area to benefit all of the residents of the Delta.
"The work that was done to bring Toyota into Crittenden County showed one indication that people in this area are willing to work together to see the region as a whole prosper. We were able to finish a strong second in our efforts to get Toyota, and that put the site on the radar for companies that are looking for a location with the benefits that the Marion site has to offer. Eventually, that site will be recognized for its accessibility. The willingness of the area to work together to benefit not only Crittenden County, but the counties surrounding it will be realized," Pickens said.
According to Tracey Teal, Chief of Staff with the St. Francis County Judge's Office, last week's meeting served as an update on what happened with the Toyota project as well as what efforts are under way to lure a facility of that expanse into the area.
"Basically, it was a catch up meeting to let us know what happened with Toyota and where things are now. It was a very informative meeting and there was input from a variety of areas," she said.
According to Teal, one of the overriding factors in Toyota's decision to choose the San Antonio site was the size of the Texas truck and sport utility market.
"From what we were told, Toyota's decision was basically based on a marketing decision. The Marion site had everything that they wanted and a Toyota representative said that the Marion location could possibly have had a $200 million advantage over the Texas site over the next 10 years, but Toyota wanted to make a larger impact into the Texas market which is the largest truck and SUV market in the world," Teal said.
According to Pickens, the Thursday meeting afforded him the opportunity to thank area leaders and also gave him an opportunity to update them on the state's continuing efforts to lure an automobile plant to Marion.
"I basically just thanked everyone for their cooperation and encouraged them to keep up their hard work. Eventually that site will be recognized for all of its assets. Currently, the state is in contact with nine automobile manufacturers, and the site will be featured in a magazine as one of the prime locations for future plants because of its infrastructure and the work done on the Toyota project. Everything points to a bright future for that area," Pickens said.
By DAVID NICHOL
T-H Staff Writer
Lake Austell at Village Creek State Park is not only back to its original level after a draw-down, it has also been included on the Arkansas Fishing Trail.
"We had to have the draw-down, because the launch ramp needed repair and the only way to facilitate that was to draw the water down," said Vicki Trimble, park naturalist. "We had to repair some places that were broken, and we had to add some to the ramp to make it longer."
She said the ramp was made longer in case of drought.
"When we have a drought, it gets pretty low," she said.
And while the lake was down, there were also some extensive improvements made to the swimming area.
Then it looked as if the lake would never get full again.
"Unfortunately, the summer following the draw-down (last summer) was a very dry year, so it took a little bit longer refilling," she said. "But it's all the way up now. It's as deep as we allow it to be, up to the tower."
There are two popular fishing lakes at Village Creek State Park -- Dunn and Austell. Austell has the reputation of having the largest bass.
Announced last week, the purpose of the fishing trail is to promote tourism. Thirty-two bodies of water in the state have been named to the trail. People who are interested may qualify for prizes by fishing at least five of the lakes (and at least one in each region) on the trail between now and Oct. 31. Details can be found on the Arkansas Fishing Trail's web site, at www.arkansas.com/fishing.
The St. Francis County Farm Bureau Women's Committee will sponsor the 2003-04, Miss St. Francis County Rice contest on Tuesday, April 21, at 6 p.m. at the St. Francis County Farm Bureau office in Forrest City.
The purpose of the contest is to promote interest in rice cookery and rice promotion among the youth and to focus the attention of the general public on the importance of the rice industry to the economy of the country.
Any person enrolled in school who is between the ages of 16 and 19 years old during the 2003-04 school year is eligible to enter the contest. Eligible persons must live in St. Francis County and must provide a three to five minute oral presentation on rice. They must also bring a prepared rice dish, which is to contain at least three cups of cooked rice, recipes cannot be prepared with uncooked eggs; three typed copies of their recipe, one copy with their name on it and the other two without; and an 8 1/2 by 11 sheet of paper with name, address, school attending, and list of activities included.
Deadline for entering the contest is Thursday, April 17, at 4:30 p.m. A cash prize of $250 will be awarded to the winner and the winner will be required to promote rice at various functions involving a number of civic, social, school and church groups. Entry forms may be picked up at the Farm Bureau office, Monday through Friday between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.
For more information contact Judy Jayroe at 581-2459 or Denelda Michaelis at 581-2277.
Three city councils are scheduled to meet tonight in St. Francis County.
The Widener City Council will meet at 6 p.m., the Madison City Council meets at 7 p.m., and the Hughes City Council meets at 7:30 p.m. The meetings will be held in each city's city hall.
At 5 this evening, the Forrest City Civic Center Commission is scheduled to meet at the civic center.
On Tuesday, the St. Francis County Museum Board will meet at 5 p.m., at the museum, and the Forrest City Water Commission will meet at 5:30 p.m. at the water department. At 6 p.m., the St. Francis County Quorum Court will meet at the courthouse, and the Colt City Council will hold a special meeting at 6 p.m. at city hall.
The Forrest City City Council will also meet Tuesday. This meeting begins at 7 p.m. at city hall. Councilmen are scheduled to be updated on a lawsuit and discuss bids for the city hall roof and condemned structures. The council will also consider the second reading of two ordinances. One ordinance is for the annexation of land, and the second is authorizing inspectors and code enforcement officers to issue citations.
On Thursday, the Forrest City Housing Authority will meet at 5:30 p.m. at the development's headquarters in the Rice and Mann housing area. The Crowley's Ridge Technical Institute's board of directors will meet at 6 p.m. at the school's campus in Forrest City.
The St. Francis County Food Pantry needs to hear from all the local churches that intend to take part in the free Easter dinners this year.
According to Catherine Freeman, the churches which have not contacted the Pantry need to do so, in order for plans can be made. The Pantry provides the food.
Churches may call 633-3382.
Also, Freeman said the Pantry is badly in need of donations.
"Our demand is so heavy now and donations are down about 25 to 50 percent," she said.