NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Tornado cleanup continues in Central Arkansas almost five months later.
Over in North Little Rock, crews are still hard at work removing debris at Burns Park, and they've come a long way since March 31st, but there's a lot more to do.
No doubt Burns Park looks different than it used to, but crews are working to get it in better shape so people can enjoy it again.
"At the end of this week, all debris will be removed," North Little Rock Mayor Terry Hartwick said. "CrowderGulf is going home, and we're very happy how it's been responded to."
You'll notice a lot less shade when you look at the park. Hartwick said the tornado knocked down more than 15,000 trees in March.
"Now we're making plans of what we want Burns Park to look like as we go forward," Hartwick said.
Part of those plans is deciding what's next for Funland.
"I don't know if we want to put all the rides back in, and we're looking at maybe an all-inclusive park that's big, maybe an arcade-type design," Hartwick said. "There's a lot of ideas floating out there about what we want to do at Burns Park."
Even though some of the park is open, other parts will have to remain closed for a while because the roads need redone.
"Those big trucks have torn it up," Hartwick said.
Hartwick's No. 1 priority is opening the soccer fields, but the roads are in bad shape to get there.
"Those roads probably cost us around $4-5 million," Hartwick said. "The first thing we'll be starting on Sept. 1 is redoing the roads in Burns Park."
Hartwick said it'll take about one year to repair the roads.
"I can't wait to make it better again," Hartwick said.
The city is currently focused on hiring a new parks and recreation director after the last one just retired.
However, Hartwick is confident they will find the right person to do the job during this recovery time.
"When one person leaves, another one steps up in our city," Hartwick said. "It's a process, but I'm very happy where the city stands compared to what happened on March 31st."
Burns Park is one of the country's top five biggest municipal parks.
The areas that remain off-limits are marked and barricaded.