Friends,

Housing for our unsheltered residents is one of the most pressing needs in our community. Fortunately, we have a strong alliance of both governmental and nonprofit agencies and individuals working to move Little Rock toward "functional zero," making homelessness rare and brief.

As we move closer to reaching that objective, the City of Little Rock is constructing a Micro Home Village to serve unsheltered residents and families as they transition to permanent housing. A groundbreaking ceremony for the new Micro Home Village is scheduled for Wednesday at 9 a.m. at 3405 W. Roosevelt Road.

The City currently does not have enough affordable housing or shelter beds to serve our unsheltered population. With the Micro Home Village, individuals and families will have a safe place to stay as they transition to permanent housing. Village residents will have access to case managers and wraparound services. The case managers will assist residents in development of plans for permanent housing. We expect the average length of residency in the Micro Home Village to be between three and six months, based on the successes of other similar communities across the country.

The Village will be on two acres with housing units and a community center. There will be 80 individual housing units and 20 emergency shelter beds, as well as restrooms, showers and a laundry room. The community center will have space for a commercial kitchen and dining hall, offices, a classroom and a health clinic. 

The City has set aside $3 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds to pay for construction and management of the Micro Home Village. I appreciate the Board of Directors for their commitment to helping our unsheltered through their support of this project.

Construction of the Little Rock Micro Home Village comes at the same time Pulaski County works to construct a similar Community Village just outside the Little Rock city limits. These complementary efforts will make a significant and positive impact on our approach to addressing homelessness in Central Arkansas.

Even as we begin construction on the Micro Home Village, we will continue seeking other transformational ways to reduce homelessness and provide support for the unsheltered. As we all know, this project alone will not end homelessness in Little Rock. It takes a quilt of solutions to achieve functional zero, and I ask for your help as we move toward that goal.

Please join me. the Board, our Department of Housing and Neighborhood Programs and other advocates for Wednesday's groundbreaking ceremony.

• The Little Rock Board of Directors will meet Tuesday, July 11, at 4 p.m. at The Centre at University Park, 6401 W. 12th St. Immediately following that meeting (which was postponed from last week), the Board will meet to set the agenda for its next regular meeting. All board meetings are livestreamed on the City of Little Rock Facebook and YouTube pages. To view the agenda, click here.
• On Thursday, July 13, the Little Rock Planning Commission will meet at The Centre at University Park. The meeting starts at 4 p.m. The Planning Commission makes planning and zoning recommendations to the Board of Directors.
• The Little Rock Police Department will host the first of several quarterly meetings to share statistics and get feedback from residents on Thursday, July 13, at 6 p.m. This quarterly meeting will be at LRPD's 12th Street Station, 3917 W. 12th St.
• The Little Rock Parks and Recreation Department's "Summer Movie at the Pool" series continues on Saturday, July 15, at the Jim Dailey Fitness and Aquatic Center Outdoor Pool, 300 S. Monroe St. Enjoy watching the movie "Puss in Boots" at the pool. Admission is $5 per person. Gates open at 7:30 p.m. with the movie starting at sunset.