Work Under Way On Hobbs Visitor Center
$3.9 Mil Facility To Emphasize Education, Nature
Last updated Friday, June 22, 2007 10:48 PM CDT in News
By Flip Putthoff
THE MORNING NEWS
ROGERS -- The songs of chirping birds blend with the rumble of heavy equipment at the site of a new visitor center under construction at Hobbs State Park-Conservation Area in east Benton County.
Work started June 6 on the center being built at the 12,000-acre park along Arkansas 12 one-quarter mile east of War Eagle Road.
Milestone Construction is building the $3.9 million facility that is funded by the state's one-eighth-percent Conservation Sales Tax. Project manager Mike Davis said the completion date is Aug. 28, 2008.
Park Superintendent Mark Clippinger stood Friday in a cleared section of forest on the south side of Arkansas 12, not far from what will be the front door of the 17,000-square-foot building.
Construction plans laid out on the hood of his state vehicle revealed a visitor center with a focus on education and the enjoyment of nature.
The inside is open and airy with exposed timber and a high ceiling. Nature art and wildlife exhibits will line corridors that lead to two classrooms, an audio-visual room, gift shop and offices.
A man-made stream, modeled after a typical Ozark waterway such as nearby War Eagle Creek, will circle the visitor center.
"It's going to be beautiful," Clippinger said, envisioning the finished center being built on one of the few relatively flat parts of the park.
Visitors will be able to enjoy a view of the forest from an all-glass wildlife viewing area with panes that stretch from floor to ceiling.
"You'll get the impression that you've come through the door and walked right back into the woods," Clippinger said.
Hikers will be able to access the 17-mile Hidden Diversity Multiuse Trail from the center or explore two shorter trails that are planned, one that is suited for wheelchairs.
All landscaping around the park will be done with plants that are native to the area.
Clippinger expects the center to create three to five full-time staff jobs and the same number of part-time positions. Plans are to hire a facility manger, another nature interpreter and possibly an assistant park superintendent.
The park office will be relocated to the visitor center from its current site near the junction of Arkansas 12 and Arkansas 127.
A turn lane will be built on Arkansas 12 at the visitor center entrance, the superintendent said.
As few trees as possible are being removed to make room for the facility, Clippinger emphasized. Islands of tall hardwoods and pines will enhance parking areas. Other steps are being taken to make the visitor center as "green" as possible.
The building will be heated and cooled with a system of around 40 geothermal wells that circulate water 200 feet into the ground through tubes to tap into the 52- to 54-degree year-round temperature underground.
A sand filtration field will treat wastewater from the visitor center instead of a septic system. Water filtered by the sand will be used to grow plants on the ground above the sand field, Clippinger said.
An oil and water separator will be installed at the parking area to remove oil from rain runoff before the water is discharged away from the lot. A separator is already in place at the asphalt parking lot of the Historic Van Winkle Trail west of the visitor center site.
Adults and children will have plenty of learning opportunities. Clippinger said Hobbs State Park will work "hand in hand" with the Ozark Natural Science Center near Huntsville to educate fourth- and fifth-graders.
Plans are to implement nature education programs for fourth-graders to prepare them for programs the Ozark Natural Science Center already has in place for fifth-graders.
Adult experiences will include "citizen science" opportunities for nature and wildlife research at Hobbs, which is Arkansas' largest state park.
Clippinger said a groundbreaking ceremony will be held July 20 for elected officials and others who were instrumental in acquiring the park property in 1979.
Fast Facts
Hobbs State Park
* Includes 22 miles of Beaver Lake shore line.
* Is Arkansas' largest state park.
* Is jointly managed by Arkansas State Parks, the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission and the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission.
Source: www.arkansasstateparks.com
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