Opponents to a proposal by North Little Rock to sell the approximately 40 acres that make up Big Rock Quarry below Emerald Park and along the River Trail will meet at 5:30 p.m. today at The Joint, 301 Main St., in Argenta.
The deal would let Real Estate Commercial 1 Inc. buy the acreage for $1.2 million for a condo development called “The Bluffs.” We wrote about opposition from bicyclists to the plan a couple of weeks ago.
Opponents to the plan have created a Facebook group, Save Emerald Park and Big Rock Quarry, to share information about the proposal. The page identifies realtor Byron McKimmey as the developer. I have a call in to McKimmey to verify.
Besides objections to spoiling a section of River Trail with a dense residential development and overlooking uses more compatible with Emerald Park and the River Trail, other problems have been raised: The only access to the site is a two-lane road, a reason Mayor Pat Hays gave some years back in nixing an idea for an amphitheater at the site. A representative of the Argenta Boosters says the sale price represents only 2/3 of value, that the land was under-appraised at $1.75 million and the city’s offer is even less.
