Ex-Chief Looks in Rearview

Retired North Little Rock Police Chief Mike Davis had his head in a new game last week in his role as Mayor Terry Hartwick’s chief of staff and point man in negotiations that have kept the Arkansas Travelers in city-owned Dickey-Stephens Park.

But Davis still bleeds blue, and he reflects nearly daily upon his 34 years on his hometown force; Ronald Reagan was president when he did his first tour as a patrolman in 1986. He certainly thinks of his legacy every time he drives down Park Hill and sees the new North Little Rock Justice Center.

“I do miss the people I worked with all those years, and that mission, and there’s no doubt there’s a thrill when I go up to that building,” Davis said. He referred to a two-story brick-and-glass complex tucked between Poplar Street and Interstate 40, a full 82,000 SF of law and order that gave a single home for the 180-officer force, North Little Rock’s District Courts and the city information technology department. Substations still exist, but the real resources are there, at the site of the old Fisher Armory.

The Justice Center, which also has a 5,000-SF public meeting hall, was christened on Dec. 9 and passed its six-month occupancy anniversary two weeks ago. Davis was on hand for the ribbon-cutting back in December, along with Hartwick, current Police Chief Patrick Thessing and former Mayor Joe Smith, who held the Justice Center dear as a pet project. Smith once told Arkansas Business he planned for the project to be on a highly visible stretch of road. “I wanted it to be right there by the interstate, where thousands of cars can see it,” he said with a laugh. “I want the people of North Little Rock to see where their money is going.”

Voters passed a 1% tax in 2018 in two halves, one a five-year levy to pay for the $30 million justice complex and Fire Department upgrades, the other a permanent half-penny per dollar for city operations. To get the Justice Center land, the city paid the North Little Rock School District $500,000 and handed over the keys to its old police headquarters at 200 Pershing Blvd., immediately north of North Little Rock High School.

“The Justice Center was a dream for me forever,” Davis said. “It was an honor to be involved in designing it, getting it ready.” Flynco Inc. of Little Rock led construction; an architecture team from Hoefer Welker in Kansas City completed the design, with years of suggestions from the police. Davis got his points across, and so did Capt. Jay Kovach, the department’s planning liaison.

“One of my goals was to bring everybody together,” Davis said. “We just had people spread out everywhere, and sometimes that face-to-face interaction wasn’t happening. I mean, when you’re working on a case, emails are great, but you can’t beat personal communication.”