By Andrea Bruner, White River Now
A building that once housed a restaurant that served a popular southern fried chicken buffet and strawberry cobbler before closing seven years ago is reopening – this time, as a pizza restaurant.
Tuesday night, the Batesville City Council gave its blessing for Fathead Pizza of Batesville to apply for a private club permit from the Arkansas Alcoholic Beverage Control Division for a private club permit.
Fathead has plans to open at 1325 East Main St. (pictured below), the site of the old Kelley-Wyatt’s Restaurant. Kelley-Wyatt’s opened in 1934 and was the first restaurant in Batesville to run a buffet (called a “smorgasbord” back then). Eventually, other locations were opened in Bald Knob, Wynne, Newport, and Pocahontas.
Kelley-Wyatt’s closed its doors in 2018.
Independence County currently has 17 active alcohol permits and one pending application, The Board on 3rd.
Independence County ABC permits are as follows, including permit name (and doing business as, if different), permittee and/or owner name, and address:
- Eagle Mountain Country Club Inc., Mark Lamberth, 800 Gap Road;
- Fox Creek BBQ Restaurant, William Collins, 129 Lawrence St.;
- White River Country Club Inc. (DBA Oscar’s Smokehouse & Grill), Richard Vanwinkle, 2500 WRCC Lane;
- Harry B. Stokes Post 4501 VFW, Curtis Matheny, 100 Legion Lane;
- Best Dam Restaurant Dining Club, Elizabeth Christian, 50 Riverbank Road;
- Reeva Dining Club (DBA U.S. Pizza of Batesville), 60 Batesville Blvd., Chintan Patel;
- Blueberry Patch Social Club Inc. (DBA Sakura Club), 3000 Jennings Lane Suite A, Jie Weng;
- Howard’s Favorite Grey Goose Inc. (DBA), Colton’s Steakhouse & Grill, 1553 St. Louis St., Deborah Jones;
- Pesto Dining Club (DBA Mi Ranchito), 5 Eagle Mountain Blvd., Cecilio Pina;
- Sherwood Dining Club (DBA Tavolo Italian Ristorante, 3000 Jennings Lane Suite G, Burim Azemi;
- Club Las Playitas of Batesville, 350 Harrison St., Jamey Vanlandingham;
- Justin Matthews Social Club (DBA Club Las Cartinas of Batesville), 2375 Byers St., Ismael Valenzuela;
- Club Stella on Main, 250 E. Main St., Laurie Gottschalk;
- Batesville Fine Dining (DBA Bruno’s Pizzeria), 2489 Harrison St., Burim Azemi;
- My Little Town Inc., 3000 Jennings Lane Suite D (formerly Bryan’s Grill / Beef O’ Brady’s), Cesar Jasso;
- Bayou Access Social Club (DBA Big’s Easy), 231 E. Main St., Sherry Stott.
There is also one microbrewery on the list: Serving Others Inc. (DBA Polk & Paddle), 146 Tham Dayberry.
Meanwhile, the ABC lists one application in processing: The Board on 3rd Inc., 156 S. Third St., Grace Hawkins.
There are also three inactive permits on the list, including Batesville Lodge (DBA Loyal Order of the Moose Lodge 1839), 750 Brewer Hill Road; The Duck Blind Inc., 1325 N. St. Louis St.; and Dixie Dining Club (DBA Bryan’s Grill), 3000 Jennings Lane Suite D.
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Also at the city council meeting, Batesville Police Chief John Scarbrough gave his monthly report and presented a promotion of Cpl. Melissa Wilkey (pictured below, far right, with — from left — council members Julie Hinkle and Fred Krug, along with Batesville Mayor Rick Elumbaugh) to sergeant.
Scarbrough said there had been three stolen vehicles recovered in the past month, and the license plate reader subscription is funded by the city’s alcohol tax.
Scarbrough also said the city had signed an MOU (memorandum of understanding) with the Arkansas State Police for Investigator Brenda Bittle to join the Internet Crimes Against Children team. He said the ASP will provide training and equipment for Bittle to start conducting crimes of that nature.
Also, January was a less busy month than December, with 860 calls for service compared to 1,036 the month before; 35 accidents (63 in December), 21 arrests (27 in December), 53 incident reports (58 in December), 71 citations (54 in December), and 81 warnings (106 in December).
Scarbrough attributed the significant decrease in the number of traffic accidents to officers working more traffic enforcement.
Scarbrough also said two officers completed the first cycle of cross training with investigators in January, and the officers were able to write search warrants and criminal affidavits, conduct narcotics purchases, and form other aspects of investigations. This experience, he said, will help the officers in their current roles.
Batesville Fire Chief Mark McCollum had a presentation of his own – Randy Jones (pictured below, right, with — from left — Batesville Mayor Rick Elumbaugh and Fire Chief Mark McCollum) received a certificate for being named best firefighter by the readers of Batesville Guard.
Jones joined the fire department in 2011 and is now a captain. On Nov. 27, 2015, he saved a man’s life.
“It was early in the morning, around 7 a.m., when the fire was reported on River Street. A man was inside and overcome by smoke, and fell on the floor, where they found him. Randy and another firefighter carried him out, and EMS took over,” McCollum said.
Jones is also the department’s public education officer, having been appointed to the position in January 2023 when McCollum took over as chief.
“Randy does a great job talking with the public and is a dedicated, reliable firefighter – the Batesville Fire Department appreciates his service,” McCollum said.
McCollum also presented his monthly report to the council. There was a total of 52 calls in January, including three structure fires, two grass/woods fires and one vehicle fire; three medical assistance calls excluding accidents, three rescues (extrication), 12 motor vehicle accident (no extraction), 19 false alarms, two good intent including service calls, three inspections, three haz-mat scenes, two gas leaks and one carbon monoxide call.
The department installed one smoke detector (which the city received grant money to pay for), conducted 15 plan reviews and three inspections, and netted 338 training hours.
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In other business Tuesday night:
Public Works Engineer Damon Johnson gave his regular update, saying, “Most of our projects are moving forward. Like battleships, they don’t cover a lot of ground fast.”
Excavation is expected to begin near Riverside Park to the new water treatment plant, depending on weather, and concrete subcontractors are preparing sites.
There will be a groundbreaking at the plant at 10:30 a.m. Thursday.
He did say the current water treatment plant “had a little upset” recently where it “struggled to make water for a few hours.”
“We are seeing moments where we are really excited for the new plant,” Johnson said.
The streets department is “mostly chasing drainage problems with all the rain,” and the speed tables have been installed per the request of the Eagle Mountain Homeowners Association (EMHA). “They (the bumps) work and they’ve been happy with them,” he added, noting the EMHA may be inclined to put in some more.
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The council approved an ordinance authorizing the purchase of equipment or materials not to exceed $42,921.00 without competitive bidding. This was a figure chosen by the Arkansas Legislature, City Attorney Tim Meitzen told the council.
Mayor Rick Elumbaugh said the city still “shops around” for the best deal on items. The council waived the second and third readings of the ordinance, which was then passed with an emergency clause to make it effective immediately.
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The council approved an ordinance to revise and update the municipal code, with the second and third readings also waived.
The ordinance states that the method of preparing and presenting preliminary and final plats has changed dramatically over the past several decades to a largely digital format; existing language in the subdivision regulations are outdated and in need of revision to reflect current practice and need for digital data to update city digital data files.
At its Nov. 2, 2024, meeting, the city planning commission approved the revisions.
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James Scales came back before the council to talk further about public service announcements (PSAs) to promote Batesville. He said he had researched television advertising and found costs of $3,500 for 10 minutes of airtime, so he is proposing PSAs, which are low cost or free.
Still, a PSA must meet certain guidelines, such as the scope of a nonprofit organization or entertainment purposes.
He said his company would create the PSAs and would like to partner with Lyon College and the University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville, as well as city parks and venues, industries, health care and businesses, for example, to provide a more comprehensive look at our community.
Scales said he was raised in Batesville and wants to do this as a way to give back.
After a 10-minute executive session, the council appointed Micah Bryant to the unexpired term of Lackey Moody (who now serves as an alderman) on the planning and zoning commission. Bryant’s father, Tommy Bryant, also served on the planning commission as well as the city council.
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Under the citizens’ comments portion of the agenda, Marcus Jackson came forward to share some information about a faith-based organization called Laborer’s Academy & Ministry working with the Arkansas Department of Correction. He said many people within prison are “trapped in this revolving door of this recidivism,” but he feels he was called to Batesville.
“I didn’t even know where it was in Arkansas; I’m a person of faith, and this is where God wanted me to be.” He said he went to work at the municipal golf course with Randy Palmer, who admitted to him he was strategically pairing Jackson with certain individuals performing community service in hopes of showing them a better life.
“You don’t have to call me to work in the Africa mission field, we have one right here,” he said. “I love Batesville and I am willing to help.”
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Elumbaugh asked the March council meeting be moved due to a conflict with an upcoming conference, and the council agreed to set the meeting for March 23.
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Alderman Fred Krug also announced that there will be a pickleball tournament fundraiser benefiting Jeff Owens, city parks director. The fundraiser will be from 8 a.m. to noon on Feb. 22, and Krug encouraged city officials to attend whether they play pickleball.
So far more than 50 players have signed up for the tournament, which is being sponsored by First Community Bank, Krug said.
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Alderman Robb Roberts noted that delivery trucks are incorrectly parking on areas along the new Main Street streetscape and suggested the city look into installing more barriers because not only will the weight of the vehicle bust up the sidewalks, but this is also a safety issue.
Aldermen Landon Reeves and Scott Fredricks were absent.
All images from Batesville City Council: Andrea Bruner, White River Now / Other images: White River Now file images
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