Garland County Habitat for Humanity recently started work on a home located on the last patch of land in its inventory, with help from Entergy Arkansas volunteers.
"At this point, this is the last property that we own, so we don't know where we're going after this," Cindy Wagstaff, GCHFH executive director, said during the build on May 4.
In addition to the build site on Boaz Street, Habitat is currently working on two other homes, Wagstaff said.
"The women's houses, or the Heels to Hammers houses, those will complete this summer and we'll put people in those houses," she said, noting the house Entergy volunteers worked on should be finished by the end of the year.
"We still need more land. So all of the issues that everybody sees as far as the increase in housing cost, the increase in land cost, all of that affects Habitat as well," Wagstaff said.
"Nobody is accepting offers, I'll be honest. So people are able to outbid us very easily and property is at a premium in Hot Springs, so that has been very difficult to come by whereas in the past people would donate property or they'll sell it to us for a great reduced rate because people weren't really interested in building on that property," she said.
With the current housing crisis, "everything is selling so it really puts us out of the market of being able to purchase and the reason why it puts us out of the market is every dime we put into a house, it has to be passed on as part of the cost of the home, so that's why we work so hard at not spending money," Wagstaff said.
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"We try to spend as little money as possible on the homes. That's why we have volunteer labor, free and reduced-cost materials and those materials include property," Wagstaff said.
The house at 119 Boaz St. is the sixth home Habitat has built in the neighborhood.
Habitat welcomes other businesses to come out and volunteer like Entergy, Wagstaff said.
"You know Entergy has been involved in Habitat for Humanity for years and usually once a year, at least once a year, they'll have a team build where they'll come out as a group and do some community service and help build a house, but of course with COVID we haven't been able to do that at all, and they haven't been able to do the outreach that they normally enjoy, so we're really excited about today because it's the first time that they've come in in a couple of years," she said.
"This is a very common thing," she said, noting other companies that have participated include Weyerhaeuser and local hospitals. "Really just about any company that wants to come out and build, you don't have to have a lot of people, just a few, and it's easy to coordinate, and it's actually a lot of fun," she said.
"All of our homes are built primarily with volunteer labor, so it definitely helps with the cost of the home which ultimately results in a lower house payment for our homeowners," Wagstaff said, and the extra hands can lead to the houses getting finished faster.
One of the Entergy volunteers, Danny Bennett, a substation technician with Entergy, said, "We're here because Entergy likes to help out in the community and do volunteer work when we can, and this being Habitat for Humanity, this was a good opportunity for us to give back to the community."
Bennett said Entergy likes to help out in the community and has also volunteered at Project HOPE Food Bank. He noted Habitat was a natural fit for Entergy because "it's the kind of work that we do. It's construction work. We like working outside and doing what we can to help the community and it's just a good opportunity to give back to the community."
Twelve Entergy employees were at the site helping on May 4, and Bennett said they were having fun.
"This is not electrical work that we're doing, but most of the guys that are good with their hands and can pick up any kind of construction activities, yeah, we're outside, the weather's nice and we're having a good time coming out," he said.
When the house is finished, Bennett said he would like to attend the home dedication.
"I would love that, I mean I'm sure there wouldn't be any reason why Entergy wouldn't allow us to do that, and we're all local, we work here in Hot Springs, so hopefully that will happen, we'll see if we can make that happen," he said.
"We are just so grateful to Entergy to take the time out of their day, and our crew loves having these guys, and they seem to be enjoying their time as well, so we're just very grateful for Entergy to help us with this project for helping create more affordable housing for the workforce in Hot Springs," Wagstaff said.
Wagstaff appealed to anyone who wishes to donate land to Habitat to "please call me. Our number is 501-623-5600, just ask for Cindy."
Entergy employees volunteer at a Habitat build site on Boaz Street in Hot Springs. - Photo by Tanner Newton of The Sentinel-Record
An Entergy employee uses a sledgehammer to put a board in place. - Photo by Tanner Newton of The Sentinel-Record