Ozarks At Large

Arkansas ends its fiscal year with a surplus of several million dollars, but lawmakers have no firm plans yet of how to spend the money. Ongoing highway improvements mean some road closures and delays over the holiday weekend. And, students at UALR react to the interest rate hike that went into effect this week on Stafford student loans for low income students.




The United States Supreme Court decision regarding the Voting Rights Act means changes for Arkansas.
The popular resort town of Eureka Springs is a prime Ozarks vacation spot filled with pretty B&Bs, cottages and cabins for overnight guests. But as Jacqueline Froelich reports, some say a glut of tourist accommodations and vacation rentals are dislocating residents, forcing them to live out of town.
Arkansas home sales are up by 10 percent according to the Arkansas Realtors Association. The half-cent highway sales tax kicks in this month and will continue for the next ten years. The Fort Smith Fire Department honors one of its own who rescued a child from a 30-foot utility shaft. And a familiar term to Fayetteville residents: construction zone.
Latest Edition of Ozarks at Large
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
On this edition of Ozarks, a conversation with photographer and author Tim Ernst. Also, giving the gift of a free family portrait to those in need.
Both the state's Insurance Commissioner and Congressman Tim Griffin agree that the federal government's decision to delay implementation of the employer mandate in the Affordable Care Act is good, though Griffin sees the delay as a political ploy. Hillary Clinton is honored today in Little Rock. And Governor Mike Beebe urges Arkansans is spreading awareness about preventing summer forest fires.
"Groovin' in Paris" by Louis Jordan
Southwestern Electric Power Company plans to install a new 48-mile long 345-kV transmission line across northern Benton and Carroll Counties to prevent outages and improve service to the region, the company says. Thousands of affected residents, expected to crowd public comment hearings scheduled next week, will claim it’s destructive. But most remain in the dark about the project’s purpose.
To read the public comments submitted regarding SWEPCO's application to the Arkansas Public Service Commission, click here and select docket # 13-041-U.
In his weekly roundup of the past seven days’ business and political news, Roby Brock, points out national news stories resonated in Arkansas last week.
Nicole Holland lived in Paris before, during and after World War II. She dictated the events of her remarkable life to her daughter, Brenda Hancock. Both women recntly came to our studio.
"Honnegar's Symphony #2" by the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra