Roads, downtown, parks part of ongoing improvements in Van Buren

Van Buren Mayor Joe Hurst said the city’s goal for 2025 is relatively simple: continue to improve what is already working. The most visible evidence of that will be when bidding opens in July on a $12 million project to improve the intersection of Highway 59 and Interstate 540.

In partnership with the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT), Van Buren will fund 25% of the project, or $3 million.

“State engineers have come up with a plan. A roundabout. We’ve been saving up for that for a while. We have $3 million in the bank ready to spend,” he said.

The downtown area will also see what Hurst has termed a “streetscape project” funded by two $1 million grants. One will improve sidewalks. The other, a Federal Emergency Administration (FEMA) grant, will address flooding issues by improving drainage in the area. Recent turmoil at the federal level has raised questions about when or if the project may begin.

“The recent spending halt may have an impact. We are searching for answers right now. We’ve been awarded the grants, and we are ready to start,” said Hurst.

Numerous Van Buren Parks and Recreation department projects are in the works, as is discussion about a proposed community center.

“We are undergoing an update to the parks plan,” said Hurst. “We are nearing the end. … COVID disrupted progress on that (community center). We will be determining whether or not to put a community center on the ballot.”

If approved, the center would be funded by a temporary sales tax.

Projects from prior years will enjoy use in 2025.

“We built a skate park last year, and we added a pickleball court,” said Hurst.

Perhaps most significantly, the city’s Field of Dreams Sports Complex has recovered fully from the devastating “two-hundred-year flood” suffered in 2019, during which flood waters rose 17 feet.

“FEMA helped restore the fields. We are back to up and running,” said Hurst, pointing to frequent use by the high school district and the Boys Club.

Another measure of recovery is the return of summer baseball and softball tournaments, which will bring visitors to the area.

“They kind of went away, but we have 16 tournaments planned for 2025. Possibly the most ever. I’m really glad to hear that,” said Hurst.

The city’s partnership with the Van Buren Public School District extends to projects such as adding a grant-funded basketball court to an elementary school. According to Hurst, schools serve as de facto parks after hours.

Hurst said projects such as the proposed community center, the pickleball court, and the basketball court come as a result of public suggestions and participation. Oversight of facilities and spending includes citizen commissions.

“We try to get people to come to our meetings. Sometimes it’s difficult to get attendance. But especially with the parks, people participate. We also get great response to surveys.”

Citizen participation has made Van Buren a frequent recipient of the Arkansas Municipal League (AML) Volunteer Community of the Year award, Hurst said.

“We’ve won 30-something times,” said Hurst, calling the achievement “an objective way to see that the community really does come together.”