More than a year into her mayorship, Vivian Flowers ran down the bullet points of how Pine Bluff is “getting (its) house in order” during Monday night’s State of the City address.
Introduced by host and former Little Rock TV news anchor Faith Woodard, Flowers offered a review of the city’s accomplishments and plans for growth inside the Pine Bluff Convention Center auditorium, including the steps to build a stronger foundation, as she put it, for the city. Among them, the city:
Appointed a transition board and led a citywide effort to compile data and document findings and recommendations;
Updated city ordinances to make the legislative process more transparent and to modernize the budget and finance processes;
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Funded and competitively selected a firm to conduct a forensic audit of the 2017 sales tax and city department activity; and
Secured capacity to update the city’s information technology systems, including software transition, email, security, network, servers and work tickets.
The city is undergoing “a software transition of epic proportions” and will take three to four years to install, Flowers said. She claimed the city’s email server was 25 years old with little security.
“That takes management and training,” she explained. “You won’t see that, but you will see results in the end.”
Flowers and other city leaders faced the Joint Legislative Audit Committee earlier this month over an audit that revealed almost $300,000 in unaccounted funds and unallowable purchases within the Parks and Recreation Department. Flowers told the committee the reported activities occurred before she was sworn into office in January 2025 and her city has adopted standard operating procedures.
Pine Bluff’s progress was outlined under three categories during Flowers’ address: investment in youths, economic development with an emphasis on infrastructure and tourism, and public safety.
The city expanded its summer youth employment program and created a paid student internship program, highlights of which were displayed on video before the address. Pine Bluff also launched a unified baseball league through its Parks and Recreation Department with a unified football league and First Tee golf program to follow.
Pine Bluff contracted a city planner to assess previous plans to plot status and metrics; formed an alliance with state and federal government officials and the Little Rock Port Authority; strengthened the Economic and Community Development Department with strategic placement, consultation and engagement; and consulted experts to manage online content, develop a social media policy and update its city symbols.
The city revealed a new logo with its motto from the city seal, “City of Progress,” and dark blue-light green color scheme to represent the water and land of the area. The logo was revealed unannounced shortly after Flowers concluded her message.
Pine Bluff also named Shawn Davis as police chief and Randy Compton as fire chief, effective Jan. 1. They were among five key departmental leadership appointments. The city has also bolstered its Police Department from 75 officers to 100 and will open five police substations to focus on high-crime areas in the city.
Flowers challenged residents to take an opportunity to redefine what Pine Bluff can be in the future.
“I ask you to stay engaged, stay informed, stay committed,” she said. “Imagine the vision we are willing to pursue together. We cannot be distracted or deterred … not by a post, not by a radio show. We’re going to stay focused on the work.
“We will see it. We will build it together. Because, what? Together, Pine Bluff wins.”
