FORT SMITH, Ark. (AP) - The Riverfront Drive Skate and Bike Park in Fort Smith is under construction.
The public-private partnership among the city of Fort Smith, local businesses and the Central Business Improvement District Commission is expected to be completed in August.
Among other bike and skate equipment, the park will include an area for beginner cyclists, a phone-charging station and a courtyard, the Southwest Times Record reported.
The city contributed more than $600,000 - $200,000 for the land and $466,511 for parking, lighting and landscaping - and private individuals and entities raised $600,000 for the biking and skating equipment. The city will own the park.
American Ramp Co. won the contract for the design and construction of the park. Silco Construction of Waldron is the general contractor on the building permit issued May 23.
The project was arranged by Sam Sicard of First National Bank, Steve Clark of ProPak and Bill Hanna of Hanna Oil & Gas. First National Bank contributed $100,000 to the project. The CBID also contributed $25,000. Sicard, Clark and Hanna are on the CBID Commission.
Last year, the U.S. Marshals Museum Foundation sold the 3.5 acres of land where the park is being built to the city of Fort Smith for $200,000, payable in 50 percent increments over two years.
In 2015, realizing it needed more space, the museum board opted for a larger 16-acre (6.5-hectare) tract of land on Riverfront Drive. Initial construction of the pad for the future U.S. Marshals Museum could be seen recently from the bike and skate park.
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Information from: Southwest Times Record, http://www.swtimes.com/
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