News Flash

Lane closure: Albert Pike Road

The outside eastbound lane of Albert Pike Road, from Airport Road to Treva Place, will be closed from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday, Nov. 30, through Friday, Dec. 4, for construction of a new driveway and curb and gutter work. 

Traffic signs will be in...

HS/GC COVID Task Force: Task force urges adherence to recommendations this holiday

Over the past week, Garland County’s COVID-19 statistics plateaued from the previous weeks’ upward trajectory, but health officials continue to urge area residents to be vigilant this Thanksgiving holiday.

Even though case numbers have ...

City offices closed for Thanksgiving holiday

The City of Hot Springs offices will be closed on Thursday, Nov. 26, and Friday, Nov. 27, in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday.

The Hot Springs Fire and Police departments will remain open, as well as Hot Springs Memorial Field Airport along...

Planning Commission Public Hearing on Dec. 10

The Planning Commission will hold a public hearing at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 10, in the Board Chambers at City Hall, 133 Convention Boulevard, to consider the following:

• Chicken Express – 3019 and 3025 Albert Pike - Lot Line Adjustment application
• McDonal...

HS/GC COVID-19 Task Force: More pandemic records set locally; ‘it’s everywhere’

“The virus has continued to spread throughout our community, our county, with no particular source; it’s everywhere,” said Garland County Health Officer Dr. Gene Shelby at the Nov. 16 virtual meeting of the Hot Springs/Garlan...

CHS Board of Directors public hearing for Dec. 1

The Hot Springs Board of Directors will hold a public hearing during the bi-weekly Board of Directors meeting at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 1, in the Board Chambers at City Hall, 133 Convention Boulevard, to consider the following:

Malvern Avenue Re...

HSPD enacts Violent Crime Reduction Strategy

The Hot Springs Police Department (HSPD) is implementing a Violent Crime Reduction Strategy for 2020-2021 to identify root causes and reduce violence within the city.

Police Chief Chris Chapmond presented the strategy to his staff, as well as the City Mana...

HS/GC COVID Task Force: Past week's new case count total all-time high

As area nursing home COVID-19 cases begin to decline from the spike in recent weeks, community spread is keeping the number of new cases and the active case count at or near record high levels.

At the Nov. 9 meeting of the Hot Springs/Garland County COVID-...

Flag Retirement Drop Box installed through collaborative effort

Thanks to an initiative by Boy Scout Troop One of Hot Springs in collaboration with the City of Hot Springs, area residents this Veteran’s Day and moving forward will be able to not only honor those who have served to protect the United States, ...

City of Hot Springs launches improved GIS Map

The City of Hot Springs Information Systems Department launched today, Nov. 9, a new updated interactive Geographic Information System (GIS) map.

The new map has the previous maps merged into a more user-friendly version, which also includes:

• the ...

Southwest corner of hill Wheatley Plaza closing for holiday tree

The southwest corner of the Hill Wheatley Plaza, near the Visitor's Center, will be closed from Thursday, Nov. 12, until the first week in January 2021 as the Hot Springs Parks & Trails Department will be installing the animated Christmas tre...

Cases and deaths in area expected in increase due to COVID-19

With the active cases in Garland County at an all-time high for the second straight week and the greatest percentage of cases being in the most vulnerable population, Garland County Health Officer Dr. Gene Shelby fears that COVID-related deaths in the cou...

Updated Street closure: Canna Road

(Updates are highlighted in yellow.)

Canna Road, between Shady Grove Road and Tatum Street, will be closed to through traffic from Thursday, Oct. 29, through Friday, Nov. 27, including overnight hours, for replacement of culverts.

Signs will be pos...

HS/GC COVID-19 Task Force: Active cases reach all-time high

The number of active COVID-19 cases in Garland County has risen to its highest number since the start of the pandemic at 247, according to Garland County Health Office Dr. Gene Shelby at the Oct. 26 virtual meeting of the Hot Springs/Garland County COVID-...

Garland County’s active cases and COVID-19 deaths rise in past week

Following a downward trend for COVID-19 cases in Garland County, the week of Oct. 11 – 18 saw a higher number of new cases, active cases and deaths, while there was a decrease in the number of tests performed.

“Unfortunately, last week ...

HS/GC COVID-19 Task Force: Continued vigilance needed to keep local COVID curve flat

Hot Springs and Garland County continue to flatten the curve of COVID-19 cases, but members of the area COVID-19 task force caution that vigilance is needed to continue to keep down the spread of the virus.

“Our community cannot let our guard dow...

State and local health officials dissuade Covid fatigue

Recognizing that many people are experiencing fatigue in respect to the COVID-19 pandemic, Garland County Health Officer Dr. Gene Shelby seeks to remind the community of the deadly and communicable nature of this coronavirus.

At the Sept. 28 virtual meetin...

HS/GC COVID Task Force: No jump in cases following latest holiday weekend

Garland County Health Officer Dr. Gene Shelby is optimistic about where Garland County stands in the pandemic as two weeks have passed since Labor Day, yet the COVID-19 numbers locally have not increased as they did following Memorial Day and Independence...

HS/GC COVID Task Force: Schools seeking prospective substitute teachers/bus drivers

At this point in the pandemic, school superintendents across Garland County are more concerned that the quarantining of teachers and bus drivers could force a change to virtual learning more so than the threat of positive cases within school districts.

At ...

HS/GC COVID Task Force: Superintendents remind families of quarantine guidelines

If a member of a student’s household tests positive for COVID-19, the student is also required to quarantine rather than continuing to attend school in person. This was the primary message from superintendents during the virtual meeting of the H...

Task force seeks to clarify state’s quarantine and isolation guidelines

During the Hot Springs/Garland County COVID-19 Task Force virtual meeting on Aug. 31, school superintendents from across Garland County reported a great first week, with hopes that communication from the task force can help clear up misunderstandings in t...

HS/GC COVID-19 Task Force: Garland County COVID cases and testing numbers are down

Garland County Health Officer Dr. Gene Shelby shared at the Aug. 24 meeting of the Hot Springs/Garland County COVID-19 Task Force that he is pleased with the current numbers for Garland County, but he continues to stress the importance of wearing masks an...

HS/GC COVID-19 Task Force: Garland County COVID trend continues in right direction

At the Hot Springs/Garland County COVID-19 Task Force virtual meeting on August 10, Garland County Health Officer Dr. Gene Shelby said that the COVID-19 numbers from the week of August 2-9 look better, and that he is pleased with the trend.

There were 171 ...

Garland County virus cases flatten, but positivity rate increases

COVID-19 numbers from Garland County for the week of July 2 – August 2 do show some “positive aspects compared to the previous two weeks” as new cases seem to be “leveling off,” said Garland County Health ...

Garland County virus cases continue on ‘major upward trend’

Garland County averaged 30 new COVID-19 cases reported daily from July 19 – 26, with a total of 210 new cases for the week, according to Garland County Health Officer Dr. Gene Shelby at the Hot Springs/Garland County COVID-19 Task Force virtual ...

$8.2 million available to Arkansans for electric utility assistance

The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) has an additional $8.2 million from the CARES Act to assist Arkansas households struggling with their electric bills.

Distribution of the funding will begin on July 27, and will continue through Sept. ...

Garland County virus cases more than double in past week

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases and those under investigation more than doubled this past week from 90 on July 12 to 188 on July 19, and the number of active cases went from 65 to 150.

“Garland County is certainly in the mix of this pandem...

Garland County positivity rate rises to 6.4%

Although the number of new and active cases in Garland County has plateaued, the positive rate of infection among the 732 tests done between July 5-12 rose to 6.4%, up from the previous week’s 2.7%.

Garland County Health Officer Dr. Gene Shelby s...

Garland County positivity rate cut in half from previous week

There were 48 new COVID-19 cases reported in Garland County from June 28 – July 5, but because of a record number of tests performed, the positivity rate decreased from the previous week’s 5.8% to 2.7%.

Also, thanks to the number of rec...

Garland County has increase of 50 new active COVID-19 cases

Following Hot Springs/Garland County COVID-19 Task Force virtual meeting on June 22, where case numbers had stabilized, data from the past week shared at the June 29 meeting showed an upward trend with 50 new cases.

Garland County Health Officer Dr. Gene S...