Vol. 2, No. 10
Thursday, March 12, 2020
Local medical marijuana dispensary may open soon By Bill Sutley Dispatch Editor A former liquor store and event center in Caddo Valley should open as Arkadelphia Dispensary LLC, the area’s first medical marijuana retail store, within a “few months,” one of three partners in its operation, former state Sen. Percy Malone said. Malone, also a former Arkadelphia mayor, is best known as the former smalltown pharmacist who’s now the CEO of the AllCare pharmacy network. But he’s made it clear from the onset that he’s keeping his
medical marijuana interests separate from his booming pharmacy network. The biggest recent development for Arkadelphia Dispensary LLC in recent months has been the state Medical Marijuana Commission’s approval that the local company be allowed to move two doors down — less than 50 yards — from its previously approved address at 188 Valley St., almost directly across from Cracker Barrel in Caddo Valley to 192 Valley St. See Medical • Page 4
A former liquor store and, before that, event center in Caddo Valley is being renovated to open soon as the Arkadelphia Dispensary for medical marijuana.
Local facilities take coronavirus action By Bill Sutley Dispatch Editor Arkadelphia’s nursing homes are following a new state mandate to limit, at least temporarily, visitors to such centers because of fears about COVID-19, the specific coronavirus that’s spreading quickly. At both Twin Rivers Health and Rehabilitation and Courtyard Gardens, both on Twin Rivers Drive, visitors began being greeted this week by an employee who asks them to answer a short questionnaire and agree to have their temperature taken. The questionnaire attempts to learn if the visitor recently traveled to a highincident coronavirus nation such as China or Italy. Any visitors who have more than Gov. Asa Hutchinson, left, speaks with the co-owners of Pediatrics Plus, Todd Denton and his wife, Amy, 1 degree above 98.6 degrees, a physical therapist after an indoors groundbreaking at Ouachita Baptist University on Monday. or normal, are denied access to nursing homes. Eddie Arnold, CEO of Twin Rivers and the neighboring Plaza at Twin Rivers, an assisted living facility,
Governor likes partnership of OBU, provider By Bill Sutley Dispatch Editor Representatives of Ouachita Baptist University and Pediatrics Plus said Monday they were blessed for so many required actions to happen so quickly in paving way fore a new facility adjacent to OBU’s campus. The partnership outlined by OBU President Ben Sells Monday will allow students to work at the facility after enrolling in a Ouachita master’s program and becoming certified applied behavior analysts. Pediatrics Plus gained a foothold in Arkadelphia on Oct. 29, 2018, when it moved into a temporary home in the lower level of Park Hill Baptist Church, 3163 Hollywood Road. That action was prompted by the sudden withdrawal of another provider of therapy, preschool and other services for developmentally disabled children. “I felt the warmth and desire for you guys to bring us into that community I’ve never felt,” said Todd Denton, an OBU alumnus. Arkadelphia apparently became Pediatrics Plus’
seventh new community to operate in. Having just opened a center in Maumelle, “we had no bandwidth to do this when the opportunity arose,” Denton said. But Pediatrics Plus was quickly approved to provide its services in Arkadelphia — a procedure that usually takes far longer. “At the same time, we had to get a license approved, and it was the smoothest process we’ve ever experienced,” Denton said. Gov. Asa Hutchinson also spoke at the Pediatrics Plus groundbreaking that was moved in because of light rain at the muddy work site between Eighth and Sixth streets, adjacent to Ouachita. “I’m a fan of Ouachita Baptist University and also a fan of Pediatrics Plus, the Dentons and what they’ve done,” Hutchinson said. “We’re blessed because we have a diverse economy, and because of that, we’re growing as a state.” He ended his brief remarks by thanking the Dentons for “your investment.” For more than a year
HSU Business Office staff to answer legislators’ questions By Bill Sutley Dispatch Editor About a half-dozen Henderson State University Business Office employees are scheduled to testify Friday at a meeting of the Joint Performance Review, which is taking the next steps in a legislative-level review of HSU’s flawed finances. Current and former Henderson administrators appeared before the Joint Performance Review Committee last week, with legislators expressing frustration after a nearly four-hour meeting determined to ferOuachita Baptist University President Ben Sells ret out financial misstatewelcomes a large crowd to a groundbreaking moved ments that have stalled legindoors Monday to celebrate the facility opening ad- islative approval of HSU’s last two audits. jacent to the campus.
3 AHS-bred athletes GAC players of the week From Special Reports
RUSSELLVILLE — Baseball and softball coaches at Arkadelphia High School no doubt got a chance to brag this week as three of their player alumni ended up as players of the week for the Great American Conference. For freshman Henderson State outfielder Alec Lewis, it was his second consecutive selection as GAC Baseball Player of the Week. He captured the award this week after finishing a four-game stretch with nine hits, a .643 batting average, four home runs and 12 RBIs. Lewis had 21 total bases in those contests and slugged 1.500. He hit three of his four home runs on See AHS • Page 4
said the statewide new rules are coming directly from the Centers for Disease Control, to help protect the elderly, who are the most susceptible to the noble virus. “If it saves one life, I think it’s worth it,” Arnold said. Arnold said he’s heard some nursing homes are going to the extremes of limiting all visitors. At the Plaza, family members who often dropped by to have a meal with their relatives living there are now being told to suspend mealtime contact for the foreseeable future. Arnold said he saw similar precautions about 20 years ago when nursing home he operated in Gurdon experienced a particularly tough flu outbreak. Baptist Medical Center in Arkadelphia has also limited access to certain areas of the hospital to avoid coronavirus contamination. One employee said visitors are now being offered only limited access to acute care areas such as labor and delivery.
before Monday, Denton has been discussing plans with OBU’s Sells and others for building a new facility adjacent to OBU’s main campus in Arkadelphia. Denton and his wife, Amy, a physical therapist, bought Pediatrics Plus in 2002, when it was a home health therapy business serving about 16 clients, running it from their home office for a year before leasing 2,800 square feet of
space in Conway for their first outpatient clinic. Mostly, at first, they provided therapy in homes and childcare centers. Since then, the company has grown rapidly, with nearly 600 employees now serving 3,000-plus clients in seven locations, including Russellville, Little Rock, North Little Rock, Sherwood, Maumelle and, See OBU • Page 4
Lawmakers asserted that the administrators failed to effectively oversee university operations. In at least one instance, HSU’s former Vice President for Finance and Administration Brett Powell expressed disappointment that he couldn’t get then-President Glen Jones to go along with his recommendation to remove the longtime director of student accounts, Scott Freeman, and transfer him outside Powell’s purview. Freeman will get a chance to respond Friday since he’s one of the half-dozen HSU Business Office employees See HSU • Page 4
Chamber of Commerce hands out awards at banquet Several Arkadelphia businesses and even the City of Arkadelphia were honored Thursday night at the local Chamber of Commerce’s annual banquet. Special guest speakers were Lee and Alicia Ducote of Benton, La., who recently launched an Amazon Prime reality show on their experiences, called Love and Romance. The couple showed several clips from their upcoming second season. Photos of award recipients are on Page 5 of today’s Dispatch.