A while back I wrote about the saga to get the USS Razorback SS-394 submarine back home and how it sounded almost like a fiction story. (See Article in Archives)

In short, following 26 years serving the US Navy, USS Razorback faithfully served another 21 years in the Turkish navy and was finally decommissioned in late 1991. At that point it was just assumed that the long obsolete World War II era submarine had been turned into scrap metal.

But a chance sighting of a portrait of the sub, some reminiscing by a group of Subvets, and “dreams", fueled a search that not only found the sub intact but ultimately landed her back “home” in Arkansas.

After a few fresh coats of paint and other minor repairs, she is now permanently on display for the public to board and explore as part of the new Maritime Museum

Once I saw the submarine up close, I was immediately impressed with just how large the Razorback is. Just to give you an idea of her size, her two propellers have been removed and they are currently on display in the Park. Each one is 60 inches across, weighs 5,500 pounds, and is made of solid brass.

As I said in the earlier article, there are wonderful stories told by the men who served on this submarine and life lessons learned every time I read one of them. I am proud of those who served, proud of this submarine and the part it played in our history, and proud that she’s home, here in Little Rock. Plan to come and see her, to descend into the ship and stand where brave men stood as they spent days underwater in cramped quarters. It’s real history on a real submarine and an experience that you don’t want to miss!

You probably have seen some of the new Best Park signs popping up around downtown lately and may have wondered “When did they do that?” I can answer that.

While most of you are enjoying your weekends going places and doing things with friends and family, we have been hanging signs, installing new coin boxes, painting poles and re-striping! And has there been a weekend this summer when it wasn’t nearly 100 degrees? Our team has picked up nice tans, a few scrapes and bruises, and lost several pounds along the way!

All kidding aside, it has been and continues to be a real labor of love. We have worked hard this summer to restore many of our parking lots to reflect the pride we have in them.

We have had many sign frames built and had them powder coated to help them look sharp and last longer. Likewise, we’ve removed old coin-boxes and had them ground down and powder coated to produce a bright, long lasting finish. We’ve also purchased and installed new coin-boxes. Hundreds of parking spaces have been re-striped and numbered so our customers can clearly see each marked stall line and corresponding stall number.

The expense of money, time and effort has been considerable in this endeavor and we still have a ways to go before this major task is complete. The progress has been steady and sure, and we intend to have the entire operation’s appearance restored by early fall.

All things considered, it’s worth it. Not only is this new “look” more indicative of our new company, it also shows the care and concern we have for our landlord’s and client’s locations. We have received several unsolicited customer compliments who have noticed the changes taking place and that inspires us even more.

As always, if you are one of our customers we appreciate you very much and thank you for your patronage. Give us a few more weekends and we’ll have this place in “ship shape!”