Staff photo
The Fayetteville City Council next week will consider a proposal to name a street section in honor of fallen officer Stephen Carr.
Carr was 27 years old when he was killed on Dec. 7, 2019 after being shot behind the police station in downtown Fayetteville.
Council Member Holly Hertzberg brought forward the measure, which would rename a portion of Porter Road between Deane Street and Mount Comfort Road to Stephen Carr Memorial Boulevard.
The street section runs past the site of the new police headquarters that’s being built, meaning the address of the facility would include Carr’s name.
“I think this would be really beneficial to honor officer Carr in a very large way,” said Hertzberg. “A lot of people are going to see this. It will be very public.”
An aerial photo shows the police headquarters construction site in west Fayetteville / City of Fayetteville
Hertzberg said the location is also fitting in that the new headquarters is being purpose built in part to protect officers.
Carr was ambushed by a gunman who shot him 10 times in the head while he was sitting in his patrol vehicle in the open parking lot behind the police station. The new facility will include a gated area for patrol vehicles in an effort to keep officers safe during shift changes.
Mayor Lioneld Jordan has joined Hertzberg as a co-sponsor of the measure.
“I think this is a real way that we can honor Stephen Carr’s service to his community,” said Jordan.
Jordan said Fayetteville Police Chief Mike Reynolds has also been involved in the memorial project.
During Carr’s funeral, Reynolds promised the officer would be forever remembered in Fayetteville.
“As police chief, I make this vow,” Reynolds said. “Stephen Carr, badge number 413, will not be forgotten.”
The 82,630-square-foot facility will also include a bronze memorial sculpture of Carr.
A photo of Stephen Carr shows the officer comforting an abandoned dog who was left tied to a bench on Dickson Street. Carr later adopted the dog and named it “Red.” A bronze memorial sculpture depicting Carr in the photograph will be installed at the new police headquarters in west Fayetteville.
City of Fayetteville
Carr grew up in Texas and later attended college at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Missouri where he played football and earned his bachelor of science in economics and finance.
After moving to Fayetteville and working at Sam’s Club, Carr followed his professed lifelong dream of being a police officer by joining the Fayetteville Police Department in April 2017.
Carr completed the Arkansas Law Enforcement Training Academy and began his career as a patrol officer in December 2017.
The council will consider the proposal at its next meeting on Dec. 7, which marks the two-year anniversary of Carr’s death. The city will also host a special blood drive with Community Blood Center of the Ozarks in honor Carr from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m on Dec. 7 at the Fayetteville Town Center.
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