Candidates square off in north Fort Smith state house district race

A love of their city and the north and east sides of Fort Smith is an ongoing inspiration for both candidates vying for the State House District 49 seat Nov. 8, each says.

Rep. Jay Richardson, a Democrat, is seeking his third-term to represent the district. His challenger is Republican businessman Max Avery, another proponent for the district's potential.

Avery has been endorsed in recent days by the NRA. Both candidates said school safety is a foremost priority, as the debate over gun ownership continues.

Richardson said, "I'm happy that Mr. Avery has been endorsed by the NRA. I am not quite sure what that means in our community. But I do know that school safety has always been a focal point and a primary focus of not only mine but I think the community of Fort Smith," Richardson said. "With that being said I think we are the leader in the state in terms in how proactive we have been about school safety."

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He said Fort Smith Public Schools Director of Safety and Security Bill Hollenbeck is admired across the state for creating a model for school safety plans and security measures that have been implemented.

Richardson said his son, Jag, attends fifth grade at Howard Elementary.

"I feel comfortable with him being there. I see the safety precautions that are there. Even this morning, when I dropped him off there were you know, public school officers there hanging out at the school welcoming people, keeping an eye on things," Richardson said. "With school safety being such a hot button right now I'm really, really impressed with what we've done as a city in Fort Smith and with Fort Smith Public Schools."

Avery, 36, said he supports the right to own firearms especially for hunting during a time of inflation and increased meat prices.

"I have a lot of personal friends who are happy it is getting into hunting season so they can actually put some food back for the winter and kind of alleviate some of the costs they have had over the summer from the failed economic polices that the Democrats have rolled out," Avery said.

Avery said he has been impressed with Hollenbeck, a former Sebastian County sheriff who is now working for the district.

"I feel like he's (Hollenbeck) has done a great job in moving forward with school security. I know that is something that has been a focus for our educators in making sure the facilities are the way they are," Avery said. "I don't want to seem complacent in saying this but I think overall, our schools are relatively safe here in comparison to other areas. But there are always going to be ways to improve that."

Richardson, 51, said he is focusing on ways to eliminate hunger and ways to address mental health in the district that covers most of north and parts of east Fort Smith in Sebastian County. The district boundaries stretch from the north part of Garrison Avenue to the Midland Avenue bridge at the Arkansas River, and it includes the University of Arkansas - Fort Smith.

"We've got to continue to work to eliminate food insecurity, which is a huge problem in the River Valley," Richardson said. "We've got some fantastic organizations that are helping to try to meet that need, but I think overall that is a huge, huge opportunity to work on and to fix that along as well as mental health."

He said students, teachers, and many others are dealing with the stress of years of pandemic.

"Coming out of COVID-19, having to deal with something we've never dealt with before. How do we recover from that? How do we get kids ready to move forward and get past that lost year of learning?" Richardson asked. "I'd like to see us get more involved and get more support for mental health for our teachers and our students as we move forward." Students in Arkansas have been behind due to the lost years.

"We've got kids who have graduated and are going to college who are behind," Richardson said. "We've got kids who were coming back into in-person learning who were behind."

Richardson said he is motivated to be a politician to help people who are struggling with hunger and homelessness. He has worked for many years he said with the Antioch Food Pantry.

"This is why I run for office, truly, I mean I run for this office so I can help the community I grew up in," Richardson said. "I love our community and Fort Smith."

Avery, the founder of a commercial driving school, said he would like to see more locally owned businesses in the district, including grocery stores.

"This has been an issue that has come up time and time again. There are a lot of people who talk about food deserts and that there are not grocers. We don't necessarily have a big fancy, Whole Foods type of grocery store on that side of town, but we do have a lot of independently owned markets."

Avery said he shops at smaller grocery stores including the Hispanic and Asian markets.

"There is good food there. Check it out," Avery said.

Early voting for the Nov. 8 midterm elections in Arkansas starts Monday, Oct. 24. Polls places will be open 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. for voting Tuesday, Nov. 8.

This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Candidates talk about House District 49 issues