Pulaski County will receive a $1 million Economic Development Administration grant to build a new conference center at the Verizon Arena in downtown North Little Rock, Ark., Sens. Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor and Rep. Vic Snyder announced in a joint statement last week.
The facility, the Six Bridges Innovation Conference Center, will include conference, exhibit and kitchen space, as well as folding partitions that will allow it to be divided into three smaller conference rooms.
Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2011, with a projected opening later next year.
"The Six Bridges Innovation Conference Center will be a great resource for businesses and organizations throughout Arkansas, and I look forward to seeing the economic development that results from this funding," Lincoln said.
Added Pryor, "The Six Bridges Innovation Conference Center will help bring together business, industry and community leaders to share best practices and come up with the next great idea. This investment will help jumpstart the economy in Pulaski County and foster new opportunities within the community."