LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — As the first anniversary of the March 31 tornado approaches, signs around the Little Rock area clearly show that a year isn't enough time to recover fully.
Some businesses are still dealing with the aftermath, especially those on Cantrell Road, which was in the direct path of the EF-3 tornado. Trio's is one of the businesses still making repairs.
"We continue to have some ventilation problems in our kitchen," Trio's Owner Capi Peck said.
Now the restaurant is temporarily closed again to fix the ventilation problems. Peck said they've faced many challenges this past year.
"We've had a big mess uncovering things that one wouldn't expect to find in a building from 1986," Peck said. "A lot of nooks, crannies, and turns, but they're doing a great job."
Upstairs at the Pavillion in the Park, Arkansas Healing Arts Massage and Wellness is also navigating some obstacles.
"We're currently in the process of moving to another suite because they're going to start construction on the roof," Arkansas Healing Arts Office Manager Jayne Rincon said.
It isn't the first time they've had to relocate.
Rincon said they had to move to University for eight months before returning to Pavillion in the Park in January.
She's just making sure clients know where to find them.
"It's been a challenge, and we've just been trying to give them a heads-up," Rincon said. "Send them a text with the proper address, and give them some direction on how to get into this building."
Across the street, construction is starting soon at the Purple Cow.
"We've got plans being submitted to the city this week," Purple Cow President Ken Vaughan said. "Depending on how quickly they turn those around, we'll be able to start construction in the first half of April, hopefully earlier."
From there, Vaughan hopes it's a smooth process with no more holdups.
"There's going to be a lot of elements on the inside that I think people are going to really appreciate and enjoy," Vaughan said.
Peck credits Little Rock's recovery to its resilient community.
"Little Rock, it's very resilient," Peck said. "We're going to come back stronger than ever."
Trio's hopes it can reopen on April 1, while the Purple Cow is expected to reopen Summer 2024.
Vaughan said the Purple Cow's new building is in the same location and will have about 15% more capacity.
The owner of the Pavilion in the Park hopes to complete all the repairs in about a year.
Those include reframing, reroofing and replacing rooftop HVAC units, flooring and awnings.
Additionally, they plan to refresh the exterior with new glass, landscaping and lighting in the parking lot.
The owner said the goal is to make the atrium more of an event center.