During Frank Scott Jr.’s first State of the City address as mayor on March 28, he laid out current and future plans for Little Rock.
Here are the top five memorable takeaways:
1. Goals to bring back “swagger” to Little Rock
Mayor Scott laid out several suggestions to lift up Little Rock’s economy and, in his memorable words, “re-establish our swagger as our state’s capital city.” Some examples being expanding the sidewalk replacement program, introducing electric scooters, and yes, actively pursuing Top Golf to come to Little Rock.
2. Announcement of the 2020 Education Roadmap
During the address, Mayor Scott emphasized the importance of local control of Little Rock’s school and announced the plan to have a “single school district south of the Arkansas River,” in order to bring back more local control to our schools.
3. Reorganization of city government
A flagship goal of the mayor is to unify the city, and he expanded on this by pointing out the many changes he has made to committees, subcommittees and city entities in his first 87 days as Little Rock mayor. This included his re-brand of the Racial and Cultural Diversity Commission, the creation of Little Rock’s Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and the forum that was held to select the new Little Rock police chief.
4. Highlighted the importance of public safety
Mayor Scott spoke on the importance of public safety and listed instituting body cameras on police officers and creating more resources for families affected by violence as examples. He also emphasized transparency, referencing the officer-involved shooting on Feb 21 which led to Arkansas’ first critical incident video.
5. The ultimate mic drop, ‘God’s Plan’ by Drake
Once Mayor Scott wrapped up his 'plans' for Little Rock, it didn’t go unnoticed how God’s Plan by Drake played over the loudspeaker, ending the State of the City Address in a memorable way.