River City Aims For New Image

Across Garrison Avenue from Judge Issac Parker’s gallows, a five-story Ferris wheel will soon jut into the Fort Smith skyline by the Arkansas River.

It’s an odd juxtaposition of old and new, serious and silly, grim and grin.

Stuffy historians may think it’s too commercial, but developers are just as serious about revitalizing downtown Fort Smith, which felt the economic noose tighten in the 1980s.

Like cities in Northwest Arkansas, downtown Fort Smith is becoming more popular as an entertainment venue and unique retail destination. Oddly enough, a 1996 tornado spurred the revitalization by wiping out several buildings on Garrison Avenue in the heart of downtown.

“It was urban renewal,” said Kelly Newton, owner of Newton’s Jewelers. “Nature seemed to do something we were never able to do.”

Newton has seen the ups and downs of downtown Fort Smith. His grandfather founded the business in McAlister, Okla., in 1914 and moved it to Fort Smith in the mid-1940s.

But Newton said he’s seen a marked improvement over the past six years. Last year, his sales increased 11 percent, and December was the store’s best month ever, with a sales increase of 35 percent over December 2003.

He celebrated by renovating the building. Newton doubled the size of the custom design studio and installed new carpet. Soon, he will install new lighting fixtures.

Newton said he’s optimistic about the future of downtown Fort Smith. People frequently inquire about property he owns on 4th Street. Some of those people, who appear to be interested in buying the property, are from Northwest Arkansas or out of state.

“I think any city that does any kind of development is going to [see it] pay off,” Newton said. “It adds to the beauty, it helps clean up areas that needed to be cleaned up.”

Fort Smith’s new Ferris wheel, which was built in 1936, was on display at the World’s Fair in San Diego in the 1970s, said Phil White, the mastermind behind The Park at West End. The wheel originally ran on steam but is being restored and will be converted to run on electricity.

White owns the lot on North 2nd Street where the park will be built. Along with the Ferris wheel, the park will feature a 1983 carousel, a 1956 Pullman train car that will be converted into a diner, a 1961 British double-decker bus that will be a hot dog and snow cone stand, and also a vintage arcade complete with antique pinball machines.

The park is scheduled to open in the spring.

Nightlife

The nightlife in downtown Fort Smith got considerably brighter when Area 51 opened on June 3 and drew a crowd of 750 people.

Owner John Richmond bought the old Kress building in October 2004. He said he picked the 38,000-SF three-story building because of its location on Garrison Avenue. He hired Robb Sampson and Michael Stahl to manage the club.

Sampson said it cost $1 million to buy the building and furnish the ground floor. However, furnishing the basement and the third floor will probably push the cost to about $1.7 million, he said.

The 14,000-SF basement, known as Billiards Down Under, will have about 25 pool tables and a bar. It was scheduled to open the weekend of July 16.

The third floor, called The Upper Kress, is scheduled to open in October. There will be a stage for comedy routines and dueling pianos in the front part of the building and a humidor and cocktail lounge in the back, Sampson said.

The ground level features several pool tables, two bars, a lounging area, dance floor and VIP section. The club, which is open Wednesday through Saturday from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m., has a maximum capacity of 850, so there’s often a two or three hour wait to get in. The club averages 1,400 to 1,500 customers per night, Sampson said.

“By 11:30, we’re at full capacity,” Stahl said.

The club employs 40 people, but Sampson said that number will likely go up to 75 when the other two floors open.

Even though the summer isn’t peak season for clubs, Sampson said they’ve probably earned a quarter of their investments in the two months they’ve been open.

More visitors are apparently spending the night in Fort Smith. According to city tax records, hotel revenue increased 26 percent from $14.3 million in 1995 to $18.1 million in 2004. And the city expects a 12 percent increase this year.

Business vs. Entertainment

Garrison Avenue has always had a split personality when it came to business or pleasure. Sprinkled along the route of U.S. Highway 64, a passerby will see restaurants, bars, government offices and retail stores. One of those stores is Johnston’s Quality Flowers, a landmark on Garrison Avenue since 1958. The company started in 1916 as a greenhouse and changed over to retail after World War II.

Butch Johnston, a third generation owner, said he doesn’t have a problem with the nightlife affecting his business.

“There’s a lot of traffic in the evening,” Johnston said. “That’s why we leave our lights on at night.”

Johnston said he even made his windows bigger along the front and on the side so his shop can be showcased. He said that anything that brings people downtown is a good thing.

Newton said he was amazed at the number of people who come downtown at night. One Saturday night, the store’s alarm went off, so he drove downtown at 2 a.m. to check on it.

“I couldn’t find a parking place in front of my store, behind my store, nowhere,” Newton said. “There were people sitting out on Garrison Avenue behind their cars like it was a parade just watching.”

Newton was so shocked at the number of people walking up and down the street that he turned on his lights so they could see in, even though there was no merchandise in his windows.

“That’s what happens in metropolitan cities with downtowns that are alive at night,” Newton said.

Bill Neumeier, owner of Neumeier’s Rib Room and Beer Garden and Papa’s Pub and Pizzaria, said he sees downtown as serving both purposes of business and entertainment.

The Rib Room has been downtown since 1988, when Neumeier said there wasn’t much restaurant competition in the area. He loves the atmosphere downtown. He said whenever he goes to a city he takes a taxi to its downtown district to scope it out. He wants people to do the same thing when they come to Fort Smith.

“Personally, I guess part of the vision I had is that downtown became the entertainment hub of Fort Smith,” Neumeier said, “and a financial hub during the day.”

Downtown’s Future

New businesses have jumped on the development bandwagon. Marquita and Ed Bailey wanted to make downtown Fort Smith nostalgic once again. They purchased a building in the 600 block of Garrison Avenue and are opening a gourmet bakery.

Bailey’s Bakery and Eatery will feature downtown’s only drive-through, offering a variety of breakfast items like gourmet pastries, coffee and donuts. For lunch they will have soups, salads, panini sandwiches and wraps. They will also offer gourmet cakes and some delivery and catering services.

The buzz has already spread through town about the bakery. People walk by trying to get a peek through the paper that covers the windows.

“I think we found the niche in the market,” Marquita Bailey said.

The building has three floors with a total of 9,000 SF. The first floor will be the bakery, which will accommodate about 70 to 75 customers. She said she hopes to be open by the first part of August.

West End Lofts has been such a huge success that development on the second phase has been discussed, said John Clayton, executive vice president and chief operating officer of ERC Development Group LLC.

Plans for West End Lofts Phase II include building an 11,000-SF commercial/retail space, and on the second floor plans are to build 17 flat-style loft apartments, about 800 SF each. One of those will be a two-bedroom handicap accessible apartment on the first floor, Clayton said.

Phase II will be located directly across from the West End Lofts on North 2nd Street. Clayton said he hopes to start construction as early as October, with completion set for mid-2006 depending on weather.

Business owners are excited about the rejuvenation of downtown. Johnston has seen more people coming into his flower shop than ever before. His revenue went up about 7 percent in 2004. He even plans to add on about 1,200 SF to his building.

Newton likes the growth, but hopes a boom isn’t in store for the area.

“I like a slow growth where people put time into it and think about where they’re putting their money,” Newton said.