Downtown Glow-Up
30 Crossing Park, part of the Downtown Little Rock Master Plan, received a whopping $30 million grant from the Bezos Earth Fund to help develop the 23-acre site beneath the newly widened I-30 bridge. With design firm Sasaki’s plans to add recreational spaces, gardens and public art, the sum supports the first phase and is “positioned to catalyze” $60-70 million in additional funding.
“30 Crossing Park will be a vibrant destination that attracts talent, tourism and investment, and will change the way the world experiences the city we call home,” Little Rock Regional Chamber Chair Ruth Whitney said in a press release from the Bezos Earth Fund.
According to our sister publication, Arkansas Business, Downtown Little Rock Partnership Executive Director Kyle Leyenberger hopes the park will be “substantially completed in three years.”
“It’s going to be a push to get it done,” he says. “But with everybody together we’re excited about it.”
In other grant news:
UAMS received a $2.9 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and associated neurologic concerns with the intention of discovering new treatments and preventions. The NIH also awarded UAMS a $2.6 million grant to train joint M.D./Ph.D. students “for the purpose of improving healthcare needs unique to the region, which is considered underserved in dual-degree practitioners.”
New Pastures
The St. Joseph Center of Arkansas has been hard at work reestablishing its role in the farm community after a fire destroyed the historic property last year. Since then, it’s helped launch farmers markets in west Little Rock and Argenta, will soon open its SJCA Farm Store at Breckenridge Village and most recently received approval from North Little Rock Parks & Recreation on a new plan: The Farm at Burns. The project proposes the transformation of a former RV campsite at Burns Park into a 47-acre community farm, pollinator garden, butterfly conservatory, greenhouse and education center with outdoor classrooms and pavilions. Learn more about the urban farming proposal at burnspark.web.app.
High Praise
The Arkansas Jazz Heritage Foundation inducted six honorees into the Arkansas Jazz Hall of Fame. The 2026 class includes:
- Charles Randolph “Randy” Goodrum
- Jonathan Karrant
- David Rosen
- Martin D. “Marty” Rosen
- Larry W. Ross
- York Edwin Wilborn Sr.
Last Call
The Arkansas Giving Guide is an annual resource highlighting local nonprofits and what they need for continued success. It runs in the October issue of Soirée, as well as in Arkansas Business.
If your nonprofit is interested in being part of the 2026-2027 Giving Guide, email Betsy Smith at [email protected] before Aug. 14.
Big Moves
Dennis Gilliam joined the board of Goodness Village.
Edie Stewart is the new CEO of Forward Arkansas, effective Aug. 3.
Presbyterian Village hired Kerri Daniels as director of development.
Economics Arkansas added Daniel McAdoo and Dr. Megan Duncan to its board of directors.
The Arkansas Community Foundation elected Vance Smiley as chair and Jennifer Ronnel as vice chair of its board of directors.