KATV Channel 7 - The Spirit of Arkansas: Little Rock tables vote to slow VA center's move downtown

By Matt Johnson

LITTLE ROCK – The Little Rock Board of Directors deferred a vote on Tuesday that would slow down a proposed Veteran's Center from moving to Main Street.

After more than two hours of public comment, the board moved to defer the vote for a month to hear more input from the community.

VA officials are seeking to move to an abandoned car dealership at 10^th and Main but have run into resistance from the city. On Tuesday, dozens of residents spoke out against the idea of a Veteran's Center that caters to the homeless moving into their neighborhood.

Last week a last-minute ordinance was added to Tuesday's agenda that would require the VA center to obtain a separate conditional use permit and hear neighborhood input before it could move to the Main Street location.

Tuesday's vote was tabled because the board felt the new ordinance was written to broadly and it could unintended adverse effects on convenience stores and realtors.

The city has maintained the new ordinance is not meant to specifically block the VA center from moving downtown.

Neighbors spoke out against a possible spike in crime and reduction of property values if the center was able to move in. However, veterans showed support for the relocation and had harsh words for critics they felt were dishonoring their service.