SPRINGDALE, Ark. — Downtown Springdale will have an entertainment district to allow those who are at least 21 to consume alcoholic beverages while within its boundaries.
In a 5-3 vote, Springdale City Council approved Tuesday (Aug. 11) an ordinance to temporarily establish the Downtown Springdale Outdoor Dining District for six months. The district will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and the ordinance went into effect immediately because an emergency clause was approved. Fayetteville has a similar district that opened July 22. The Fort Smith Board of Directors approved an ordinance to allow for a permanent entertainment district at Chaffee Crossing during its regular meeting Aug. 4.
The Springdale district runs along Emma Avenue, between Shiloh and Water streets, and includes several adjacent blocks, between Grove and Emma avenues and Meadow and Johnson avenues. It includes Walter Turnbow Park and Shiloh Square. The district also spans the Arkansas & Missouri Railroad at Emma Avenue before coming to an end at Emma Avenue and Water Street.
“This vote represents momentum for all that we are striving to accomplish for downtown,” Executive Director Jill Dabbs said. “The Outdoor Dining District will be a catalyst to increase the number of lunches eaten in downtown. It will be a hook for recruiting and attracting new restaurants and businesses to downtown for a more robust dinner scene. It will help art activations to be more successful. It will help people discover what an amazing destination downtown Springdale is and becoming for the future.”
Click here to continue reading from Talk Business & Politics.
