Arkansas Business Story on UALR

This story in Arkansas Business talks about the history of UALR and features the University District Development Corporation efforts. Broadmoor is mentioned.

City shutting down our Alert Center

The City of Little Rock plans to close the Tyler Street Alert Center January 1, 2010, to save money.

The Tyler Street Alert Center houses Code Enforcement staff who enforce city codes and the Rental Inspection Program in Broadmoor. It also employs a neighborhood facilitator, who we will lose with the closing.

Many of us have been to meetings at the Alert Center, and our neighborhood has benefited from its presence. It is not clear how the City plans to conduct code enforcement and rental inspection without the centers.

On Tuesday, December 1 at 5 p.m., there will be a rally and press conference on the front steps of Little Rock City Hall for citizens to voice their opposition to the closing of Tyler Street and five other Alert Centers. A City Board meeting will follow at 6 p.m.

New fence work on dam

Broadmoor board treasurer Karen Walls has led the effort to have new gates placed at the ends of Broadmoor Dam. The old gates were 40 to 50 years old and were worn out.

The new gates will allow service vehicles to go onto the dam from either end. Formerly, vehicles could only enter from the north. Now, the crest of the dam south of the emergency spillway is accessible.

New fencing was added next to the homes adjacent to the ends of the dam, too. The new fences are 6 feet high, preventing people from hopping into the yards to avoid the high gates.

The new fencing also shuts off a gap that allowed trespassers into the park on the north end.

Thanks, Karen, for your leadership.

University District podcast on The Arkansas Realtor

Ethan Nobles with the Arkansas Realtors Association recently interviewed Ron Copeland, who is heading the University District Partnership. Hear the podcast here.

Some Holiday Safety & Crime Prevention Tips

Tips from Dwight Davis, neighborhood watch coordinator for Little Rock:

Be aware of your surroundings

Shopping
Shop before dark if possible. Possibly coordinate shopping trips with a friend. Never park in an unlit lot or area, no matter how convenient it is.

Lock your packages and gifts in your vehicle's trunk. Keep you vehicle's doors locked and windows closed.

If you have an auto alarm, have your keys in your hand. The alarm can be use as a panic button.

Avoid carrying large amounts of cash. Pay for purchases with a check, credit card, or debit card when possible.

To discourage purse-snatchers, don't overburden yourself with packages. Have your purchases delivered whenever practical.

Be extra careful with purses and wallets. Carry a purse under your arm. Keep a wallet in an inside jacket pocket, not a back trouser pocket.

Teach children to go to a store clerk or security guard and ask for help if you become separated. They should never go into a parking lot alone.

During the year-end holidays, people are often busy, excited and sometimes a little bit careless.

At Home
Be extra cautious about locking doors and windows when you leave your house or apartment, even for a few minutes.

Don't display holiday gifts where they can be seen from a window or doorway. Store gifts before you go away on a holiday trip.

If you go out for the evening, turn on lights and a radio or television so the house or apartment appears to be occupied.

If you take a holiday trip away from your home, have some interior lights activated by an automatic timer. Have a neighbor or family member watch your house, shovel new snow, pick up the mail and newspaper and park his or her car in your driveway from time to time.

Participate in Operation Identification and mark your valuables with a unique identification number. An engraver can be checked out at any Central Arkansas Library system Branch or Alert Center.

Be wary of solicitors and strangers soliciting for charitable donations. They may attempt to take advantage of people's generosity during the holidays. Every stranger is not a criminal, if interested ask for identification and solicitors permit. Don't be afraid to say NO!!

After the holidays, mark new gifts with an identification number and record new serial numbers.

Test your smoke detectors.

Use only fire resistant ornaments on a holiday tree and make sure electric lights are in good working order. Don't leave the lights on overnight or when you are away from home.

If you have house guests, advise them of your security precautions and make sure they follow them.

Avoid leaving boxes from purchases (especially TV's, Computers, Video Game, DVD & CD players etc.) out on the curb for trash pickup. Break the boxes down and turn them inside out.

All door-to-door solicitors must have a Solicitors Permit from the Treasury Office. It can be a For Profit or Non-Profit Permit. Any individual who solicits is required to have their individual permit with them. If you choose to talk to them, immediately ask to see their individual permit and if they don't have it, call the LRPD at 371-4829.

Utility Company Recognition

Entergy –
All meter readers are in Entergy-marked trucks. They have certain uniforms that say "Entergy" or "Baker," which is the contractor used for meter-reading. Additionally, the line crew is always in Entergy trucks and they wear an Entergy hard hat. All employees have a picture ID, which they will present if someone asks them for it. We will follow up with them on requiring that the ID be visible.

Central Arkansas Water –
All meter readers should wear ID badges, but CAW will make an effort to have them make the badges more visible for everybody. Rich said he would also contact his staff about requiring them to wear reflective shirts that say CAW or a CAW hat. He said he would also check with staff to ensure that everyone is wearing their ID badge. Meter readers typically do their work in the neighborhoods in the mornings, at dusk and on weekends.

Comcast –
All Comcast employees wear uniforms and wear pictured ID badges, including the contractors. Wilson said Comcast takes the responsibility seriously and these requirements are written in the contract agreement.

AT&T –
All meter readers have an ID card and they all have uniforms, except the door-to-door sales people. The door-to-door solicitors carry a letter with them identifying them as working for AT&T. AT&T has currently suspended all door-to-door solicitation activity in the Heights.

Centerpoint –
Baker Engineering is the meter-reading contractor and they wear uniforms and have an ID, although they don't wear it. The shirt the employees wear has a big logo on it that clearly identifies them. The meter readers for Centerpoint (that aren't with the contractor) wear shirts that say "Meter Reader" and a Centerpoint hat. They also have an ID, but they don't wear it. Centerpoint talks about these issues in safety meetings regularly and they always want to be clearly identified. In the past, they've had contractors that got lax about this and those contractors were terminated. We will follow up on requiring them to have their ID visible.

Little Rock Wastewater –
All employees wear ID badges and any employees who would go to a door have business cards. Additionally, all employees wear a uniform with the LRWU logo and the employee's name.

5th Annual University District Thanksgiving Festival

A Night of Thanks
Thanksgiving Eve Service
Wednesday, Nov. 25th 7pm
Mosaic Church of Central Arkansas

Thanksgiving Meal
Thanksgiving Day 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Traditional Thanksgiving Meal
• Games and Fun for Kids
• Clothes Exchange - Have extra clothes? Bring them! - Need clothes? Take them!

Be sure to bring your friends and family to this free two-day celebration!
Call 562-3336 for more info.

Mosaic Church is located at 6420 Colonel Glenn Rd. next to Kroger, just west of the intersection of University and Asher/Colonel Glenn.

The first BPOA newsletter

Read the first Broadmoor Property Owners' Association newsletter here.

List of homes for sale in our area

Homes for sale in the University District are listed on the Internet by the University District Partnership staff. To see the lists, click here.

Thanksgiving tips from the U of A Cooperative Extension Service

The University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service, whose main office is located just across University Avenue from our neighborhood, has great tips on such issues as managing holiday stress, maintaining your lawn, and household finances.

Check out their Web site for more handy information.

Productive town hall meeting

The University District Partnership hosted a great meeting tonight to discuss the Partnership's efforts and what we can do to improve academic achievement in the University District.

Scores of Broadmoor residents have joined their neighbors from throughout the District to help UALR reach beyond its fence. Despite one attendee's assertion that the citizens of the District are doing nothing while "waiting for UALR to do something," the discussion was very productive, focusing on getting past the core leadership who has been involved with the District for the past several years. It is time to reach the rest of the community.

We appreciate the efforts of UALR and of the hundreds of people who live in the District who have helped with the process.

Broadmoor map

Your Broadmoor Directory has a great map showing what houses lie within the Broadmoor Recreational Improvement District of the City of Little Rock.

Christmas Decoration Contest announced

Get out your lights and decorations! Broadmoor residents are all eligible for the annual Christmas Decoration Contest. The contest goes back to the early days of the neighborhood and is great fun. The neighborhood will award the first place winner $100, second place $50, and two third place winners $25 each.

1964 winner

Fifty years ago, the awards were $10, $5, and $2.50.

Judging will occur in the week before Christmas.

Enjoy the flowers

We have a little time before winter.

University District education town hall meeting

From the University District Partnership news:

Town Hall Meeting on the “State of Our Kids”

The UDP will host a Town Hall Meeting on Tuesday, November 17, at 6:00 P. M. at the Jack Stephens Center, Legends Room. The meeting will focus on the “state of the kids in the University District”.

Participants will be asked their impressions of the greatest challenges facing kids in the District today and over the next several years, with emphasis on public education and academic achievement. Participants will also be asked to identify and describe existing educational and childhood development assets and whether or how they can be used more effectively.

University District Web page

New..A Modern "In-the-city" Suburban Subdivision You'll Love!

This is one of the advertisements that Broadmoor's developers, Fausett and Company, created in the early 1950s. Click on the picture to see a larger version.

Board meeting November 5, 7 PM, Clubhouse

Broadmoor Property Owners Association/

Broadmoor Recreational Improvement District

Board of Directors

Thursday, November 5, 2009

I. Introductions

II. October minutes

III. Treasurer’s report

IV. Pool report

1. Report on ownership of pool

V. Neighborhood Watch report

VI. Public Relations Committee report

1. Newsletter update

VII. Clubhouse, Park, Lake, and Dam issues

1. Rock wall repair status

2. Fall tree planting

3. Fence repair

4. Other issues

5. Fall dam clearing

6. Other items

VIII. Quality of Life Committee issues

1. Neighborhoods USA conference

2. Christmas decoration contest

3. Other items

IX. New, old, other business and announcements

X. Adjourn

Great Broadmoor Halloween

The weather cleared nicely for Halloween Night in Broadmoor. The layout of our neighborhood makes it ideal for trick-or-treaters. Hundreds of kids enjoyed going door-to-door, greeting residents, and receiving lots of candy.

Thanks to everyone who decorated and participated!