The Lee family, Chui Fan Lee and his two daughters Nancy and Joyce Lee, have amassed a property portfolio of more than 50 properties in Brisbane, Ipswich and Toowoomba since the mid-1960s, through an investment company called Mount Cathay Pty Ltd. Walton Arts Center | Fayetteville AR - Facebook The group said Walton Arts Center's chief executive informed organizers of the decision over several conversations that began in March. by Tess Vrbin, Arkansas Advocate May 23, 2023. Walton Arts Center 495 W. Dickson St. Fayetteville, AR 72701 Box Office Lobby Hours: Monday-Friday / 10am-2pm; 90 minutes prior to most performances Box Office Phone Hours: Monday-Friday / 10am-5pm; 90 minutes prior to most performances Box Office #: 479.443.5600 Admin Office #: 479.443.9216 info@waltonartscenter.org Were sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. The Walton Arts Center's decision comes in light of Act 131, a state law signed in February restricting "adult-oriented performances." The law initially would have banned drag performances in the presence of minors, but references to "drag" were removed after multiple amendments in the legislative process. Eighth member resigns from Walton Arts Center board amid drag decision The Arkansas Times has been fighting for truth and justice for 48 years. They are alongside the proposed $500 million redevelopment of the Valley Metro site, which includes the Fortitude Valley train station, proposed by LaSalle Investment Management. (KNWA/KFTA) Six members of the Walton Arts Center board of directors said they are resigning in response to the center's decision to no longer host drag performances. Our monthly magazine is free at over 500 locations in Central Arkansas. Due to the charged nationwide political conversations around drag and minors that many times results in divisive and dangerous rhetoric, we asked if there was any way we could help NWA Pride reach its intended goals for the Youth Zone without drag performances for minors, the statement read. Due to the charged nationwide political conversations around drag and minors that many times results in divisive and dangerous rhetoric, we asked if there was any way we could help NWA Pride reach its intended goals for the Youth Zone without drag performances for minors. The release announced that no official Pride events would take place at Walton Arts Center based on the theater companys decision to ban drag. Mary Hennigan is a Little Rock city reporter for the Arkansas Times. Gathright expressed disappointment on the decision, but quickly pivoted to find new host locations and said that he has received overwhelming support in the time since. Jebarajs resignation letter is strong. Our decision was made in the interest of safety concerns for performers, patrons and staff due to the divisive political rhetoric at this time.. The balcony roof is slate with hipped ends, and is supported on decorative brackets. Jennifer Wilson, the public relations director at the Walton Arts Center, said Wednesday that the executive team is made of Lane, the COO Jeffrey Mann, CFO Tim Vogt and other senior leaders from each department. Peter Lane, the president and CEO of the Walton Arts Center, sent an email to employees on Tuesday in which he emphasized in bold and underlined letters that the Center has not banned drag shows and does not exclude minors from being at drag performances. In the weeks that followed, at least one employee left the Walton Arts Center, as well as at least nine members of the board of directors. Walton Arts Center won't host drag story time for minors during Pride this year. In the Tuesday email, Lane wrote that executives were concerned about plans to restrict parent, guardian, and caregiver access to the Youth Zone and drag performances for minors. This conflicts with a May 19 statement from NWA Pride that notes parents and guardians are welcome and encouraged to attend spaces together. The youth program was moved from the Walton Arts Center to the Fayetteville Town Center. In an internal memo obtained by KNWA, WAC CEO Peter Lane reiterated that drag was not banned. Our decision was made in the interest of safety concerns for performers, patrons and staff due to the divisive political rhetoric at this time. The Arkansas Advocate is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization dedicated to tough, fair daily reporting and investigative journalism that holds public officials accountable and focuses on the relationship between the lives of Arkansans and public policy. In the statement, the Walton Arts Center says that its decision to not host the events centered around the heightened and divisive political conversations around drag and minors. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of photos and graphics. (KNWA/KFTA) Saturday evening, the Arkansans for Social Justice held a protest at the Walton Arts Center to advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, after the Walton Arts. The building was altered externally to match Chinatown, created in this section of Duncan Street in the 1980s. Gathright said the move also means the centers plaza wont be used for the parade emcee and announcers. Northwest Arkansas Pride will not hold any official events inside Fayettevilles Walton Arts Center for the states largest celebration of the queer community, NWA Pride Director Richard Gathright said Wednesday. Fortitude valley, Northwest Arkansas Pride Organizers Change Venue After Center Says No Administrator, Fortitude Valley Revisited (Facebook), Citation prepared by Brisbane City Council (page revised September 2020), At173 The offices and shops were to be leased; despite the war, demand for rental premises in the area remained high. That law wont take effect until late July. She previously covered local government for The Commercial Dispatch in Mississippi and state government for the Columbia Daily Tribune in Missouri. Lane has not made a public statement since Gathright pulled the programming. The same aspect of the Walton's building on Thursday. The Arkansas Times obtained the email through an anonymous source close to the company. For 48 years, our progressive, alternative newspaper in Little Rock has been on the front lines of the fight for truth, and with your support, we can do even more. DEIJ Policy | Ethics Policy | Privacy Policy. May 2017. Heres a list of dog shoes that will protect your pet. This was converted into the Melba Continuous Picture Theatre in 1913. F AYETTEVILLE, Ark. Pine Bluff voters narrowly reject sales tax proposals, Radar outage at Little Rocks National Weather Service due to air conditioning issue. Arkansas Pride event changes venue after drag show restriction - NBC News Six members of the Walton Arts Center Board of Directors announced their resignations Friday afternoon in light of the center's decision not to host drag events for minors during Northwest Arkansas Pride celebrations next month. Several dozen protestors gathered in Fayetteville Saturday, unhappy over the Walton Arts Centers recent decision not to host drag queen shows in the Youth Zone during this year's Pride weekend. The good two-storied Brick Building with its six ground floor shops was offered for sale in 1946. A former employee and member of the centers diversity group said that she was informed the next day, and, ultimately left her job because of the decision, . In his resignation letter, Jebaraj noted that. L1_RP9553; Founded 1974, the Arkansas Times is a lively, opinionated source for news, politics & culture in Arkansas. The lengthier statement also dug deeper into the political argument around the decision. for its austere and unusual architecture; and, as one of a number of nineteenth and early twentieth century buildings that form an historic streetscape along this part of Wickham Street. , the public relations director at the Walton Arts Center, said Wednesday that the executive team is made of Lane, the, The rest of the company was informed of the decision after Gathright was notified. The architects engaged for the project were Hall and Dods, one of Brisbanes most eminent architectural firms. Read the Walton Arts Center full statement here. The Waltons building in Fortitude Valley is up for sale.Credit: Tony Moore. Join the ranks of the 63,000 Facebook followers, 58,000 Twitter followers, 35,000 Arkansas blog followers, and 70,000 daily email blasts who know that the Arkansas Times is the go-to source for tough, determined, and feisty journalism that holds the powerful accountable. Casey Hamaker, a city-appointed board member, said she and five others walked out of a board meeting on Thursday feeling that we could no longer serve.. Knight Frank has decided to market the property to overseas markets as much as the Australian commercial property market. A new university-run restaurant is also planned on the lower ground level. Founded 1974, the Arkansas Times is a lively, opinionated source for news, politics & culture in Arkansas. Theyre trying to censor clear art at an arts center, Gathright said. A small cantilevered balcony occupies the central section of the upper floor separated by flat pilasters from two flanking bays, each containing a tall narrow window opening with a decorative flat key stoned lintel. The comments immediately were flooded with disappointed statements that assigned shame to the company, and sometime in the last 13 hours the comments were turned off. Without consulting the board, the CEO of the Walton Arts Center made a political decision to no longer permit age-appropriate drag performances. The Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville, Ark., in June. The statement was released ahead of a planned protest of the decision on May 20 hosted by Arkansans for Social Justice. Fairfax Media understands LaSalle, whichbought Brisbanes Post Office Square for $95 million in January, may be interested in the Fortitude Valley Waltons Buildings. Walton Arts Center Former Waltons Department Store in Fortitude Valley to be Redeveloped , sent an email to employees on Tuesday in which he emphasized in bold and underlined letters that the Center has not banned drag shows and does not exclude minors from being at drag performances. Our monthly magazine is free at over 500 locations in Central Arkansas. Mary Hennigan is a Little Rock city reporter for the Arkansas Times. Retail giant Waltons Limited moved into the Valley in the 1950s, alongside famous drapery business Overells Pty Ltd, which had established several stores and a thriving business in the inner-city suburb since the turn of the century. Gathright cited the Centers refusal to host the Youth Zone and to not allow drag shows where minors would be permitted. Arkansas Advocate is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Help us deliver the latest daily reporting and analysis on news, politics, culture and food in Arkansas. 4006. Walton Arts Center is Arkansas' premier center for performing arts and entertainment. We are equally concerned about how these events might be used in a political context particularly to further attacks against the LGBTQIA+ community, or to undermine the arts education work or overall operation of Walton Arts Center for the entire NWA community. We want to share a deeper explanation of the decision. IE 11 is not supported. As an organization, we will learn from this experience and work to ensure that our entire community, including our LGBTQIA+ partners, understand how we assess operational concerns around events, and will commit to bring community partners into operational conversations earlier in the process. Gathright cited the Centers refusal to host the Youth Zone and to not allow drag shows where minors would be permitted. This decision is surprising, disappointing, and inconsistent, the group said in a statement. The bill was stripped of its teeth and went on to become Act 131. She said she believed the Walton Arts Center is suddenly choosing to vilify drag performances and transgender people, since the center hosted Northwest Arkansas Prides events aimed at youth without issue in the past. , the Walton Arts Center said it regrets that the decision has upset many in the community, and claimed that was not the organizations intention. The Walton Family Foundation appoints 11 board members, the city of Fayetteville appoints six and the University of Arkansas board of trustees appoints six more. She retained both buildings until 1981. (File photo/NWA Democrat-Gazette/Hank Layton . Newly erected premises, this time housing undertakers, were gutted in another blaze in December 1896. Official Pride events will take place on June 24 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., which will be concluded with the parade down Dickson Street. Walton Arts Center has not ended its support for our LGBTQIA+ community, NWA Equality or the Pride Festival.. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); 2023 Brisbane Development Pty Ltd. All Rights Reserved, Former Waltons Department Store in Fortitude Valley to be Redeveloped, 4006 - Newstead, New Farm, Fortitude Valley, The Governments Cul-De-Sac Ban a Game Changer for Good Urban Design, Commercial Tower & New PCYC Proposed for Fortitude Valley, 14-Storey Residential Tower Proposed for Hamilton, 17-Storey Residential Project Proposed for Albion, Boutique Commercial Building Proposed for Newstead, Building greenery (Buildings that breathe). Uribe said in her resignation letter that she observed a misalignment between the organizations actions and its stated commitment to inclusion and community support in her five years on the board. The arts center released a statement Thursday saying its decision was not easy and promising to learn from this experience.. Anne OLeary-Kelly, Jody Dilday, Lia Uribe, Mervin Jebaraj and Cal Rose joined Hamaker in resigning. Waltons old buildings were removed from the site in late 1915, and contractors H and DF Roberts, a well-known firm in Brisbane, began work on the new property. Balcony access is provided by two pairs of French doors and fanlights flanking two narrow windows, all separated by narrow brick piers. It's in reaction to the Walton Arts Center's decision . Shop windows were constructed along both frontages on the ground floor, making the most of the buildings corner position. Northwest Arkansas Equality said its pausing its partnership with the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville after the facilitys governing board this month upheld the restrictions on drag shows for the weekend, which is held in June. Conversations about drag performances were plentiful in the Arkansas Legislatures latest session. The sale could allow the building to be transformed into a retail, residential or commercial centre, a mixed-use development, or linked to an arts facility or theatre. The board was unable to fully acknowledge, apologize for, or attempt to make amends for the organizations role in this situation. Its very upsetting, Gathright said. It perpetuates stigma that drag kings and queens are dangerous. Several dozen protestors gathered in Fayetteville Saturday, unhappy over the Walton Arts Centers recent decision not to host drag queen shows in the Youth Zone during this year's Pride weekend.The protest follows the resignation of seven of the center's board members Friday. Our community won't stand for bigoted, homophobic policies any longer, said Kaitlin with Arkansans for Social Justice, who did not want to give her last name.The Walton Arts Center released a statement Thursday that said: "Due to the charged nationwide political conversations around drag and minors that many times results in divisive and dangerous rhetoric, we asked if there was any way we could help NWA Pride reach its intended goals for the Youth Zone without drag performances for minors," the statement read.