Friends,

Throughout 2025, we have emphasized the importance of engagement with our residents. We want everyone to know that City Hall is accessible and available, while making sure you have all the information you seek on municipal government. This year, we took City Hall out of Downtown and into neighborhoods through our Mobile City Hall initiative, and we focused on telling the important stories of our residents and community through our social media channels and the Inside The Rock newsletter.

In the next year, our goal is to find new, innovative ways to increase outreach and engagement. To do that, we need your help. We ask that you:

• Follow the City of Little Rock on social media. We are @CityLittleRock on Facebook, Instagram, X, and YouTube.

• Make sure your friends and colleagues subscribe to this newsletter, too.

• Sign up for our news releases.

• Keep up-to-date on community meetings, resource fairs, town hall forums and more by visiting our website calendar of events.

The best way to stay informed is to hear directly from us about what is going on right here in Arkansas’s capital city. We will continue sharing important updates and news that makes our City better, safer and stronger.

I appreciate you!

BUILD Academy, Emprende Craft Entrepreneurial Leaders

In a few weeks, the City of Little Rock will kick off its sixth year of BUILD Academy, our small business incubator program intended to connect potential with opportunity for entrepreneurs in Arkansas’s capital city.

BUILD is an acronym for Businesses United In Leadership Development, and it is a program we established during the pandemic as a way to help entrepreneurs scale their businesses and be successful. The goal of both BUILD and its Spanish-language counterpart, Emprende, is to provide resources and support to business owners, thereby strengthening the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Little Rock.

Registration is open now for BUILD Academy, which starts in February. The 12-week program is held in person each Thursday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the City of Little Rock’s Willie L. Hinton Neighborhood Resource Center, 3805 W. 12th St.

The deadline to apply for the 2026 cohort is Wednesday, Dec. 31.

For the 2026 cohort, we are encouraging applicants with small businesses in the following fields: construction and trades, food and hospitality, professional services, retail and e-commerce, health and wellness, transportation and logistics, and creative and maker industries.

Entrepreneurs may access the application for BUILD Academy on the City’s website and visit the site for more information about the program.

Emprende begins Wednesday, Feb. 18, and meets weekly for 12 consecutive weeks at the Willie Hinton Neighborhood Resource Center. Like BUILD, Emprende is open to all small business owners, but is specifically encouraging entrepreneurs in the construction, food service, professional services, retail and e-commerce, landscaping, or janitorial fields.

To learn more about Emprende, click here. The program is offered entirely in Spanish, and it is the only one of its kind in Little Rock that provides Spanish-speaking entrepreneurs with classes on starting, maintaining and growing a business. Applications for Emprende are due by Jan. 16, 2026.

Both courses are intentionally designed to help residents turn their resources and knowledge into a healthy, home-grown business. We are proud of what our BUILD Academy and Emprende alumni have accomplished thus far, and look forward to new entrepreneurial success stories in early 2026!

Helping Others This Holiday Season

This time of year, our thoughts often go to those who may not be able to afford items that many of us take for granted.

We appreciate everyone in our City willing to give of their gifts, time, money and talents to help friends and neighbors in need, and we are especially grateful for our fellow team members working to make a difference in the lives of our residents.

This year, our Department of Housing and Neighborhood Programs is just one of our departments participating in clothing donation or food drives. We are asking residents to show their support to those who are food insecure or in need of warm coats this winter.

Now through Friday, Dec. 19, residents can drop off nonperishable food and gently used or new coats, hats and gloves at City Hall or the City’s Neighborhood Resource Centers. Our team will ensure the donated food and clothing are provided to local families that need them most.

Every item makes a difference, so please consider this or the countless other worthy food, clothing and donation drives in our community this holiday season.

Talented LRSD Students Spread Cheer

Last Friday, the Parkview High School Madrigals turned the City Hall rotunda into a lively performance hall when they graciously stopped by to sing some Christmas tunes.

Of course, I am partial to my alma mater, but their uplifting sounds were a highlight of the week for our City Hall staff, and we thank the madrigals, led by Mary Shollmier, for surprising us with festive music,

There are talented students in every school in the Little Rock School District, and fortunately, residents have an opportunity to hear them this week with special performances at the Little Rock School District Administration Building, 810 W. Markham St.

These lunchtime performances started last week, but there is still time to catch a few before LRSD’s holiday break. The remaining performances are Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. daily.

On Tuesday, Dec. 16, hear from the Forest Heights STEM Academy Strings and the choir, students from Chicot Elementary, and the Roberts Elementary ENCORE Choir Club.

On Thursday, Dec. 18, the Western Hills Ukulele Band, Dunbar Middle School Band and Choir, and Mann Magnet Middle School Dance will perform.

Then on Friday, Dec. 19, there are performances from the Marian G. Lacey K-8 Academy band, choir and dance team and the Mann Magnet Middle School Jazz Band.

LRSD requests bringing a new, unwrapped toy for its holiday gift drive. And, all performances will be livestreamed at www.LRSDLive.com.

Parkview’s Madrigals paid a surprise visit to City Hall

Here’s a quick look at what’s going on this week in the City of Little Rock:

Tuesday, December 16: The Little Rock Board of Directors will meet at 6 p.m. in the Board Room at City Hall, 500 W. Markham St. All board meetings are open to the public, and all meetings are livestreamed on the City of Little Rock’s Facebook and YouTube pages. View the agenda here.

Wednesday, December 17: The Land Bank Commission for the City of Little Rock meets at noon at the Willie L. Hinton Neighborhood Resource Center, 3805 W. 12th St.

Thursday, December 18: The Little Rock Civil Service Commission meets in the City Hall Board Room at 8:30 a.m.

Thursday, December 18: The Little Rock Board of Adjustment meets at 4 p.m. in the Board Room at City Hall. This board considers requests for variances from the City’s zoning ordinance.

Saturday, December 20: This year’s annual Ugly Sweater Race and Elf Dash sponsored by the Little Rock Marathon is at Two Rivers Park. Registration is already sold out for this festive holiday 5K which starts with an Elf Dash for children 10 and under at 8:45 a.m.