Riff Raff

by Michael Tilley -

Riff Raff: Extension suspension

Infrastructure is, mostly, good. Roads, utilities, runways, bridges, drainage, water systems. All that and more. Most officials of any city want smart, robust infrastructure at all levels. As do most…

by Michael Tilley -

Riff Raff: Watch your step

An outline of planned pay raises for more than 1,100 teachers was presented during a Fort Smith Public Schools Board meeting in late April. There was little board discussion about…

by Michael Tilley -

Riff Raff: Recipe support

Dr. Seidensticker, a college professor, made me a cassette tape of recordings of music by composers Haydn, Stravinsky, Wagner, and others, although he said Wagner could be tough to follow…

by Michael Tilley -

Riff Raff: A note about David

A specific item is why most attend a voting or study meeting of the Fort Smith Board of Directors. A zoning change. Proposed policy opposition. Or support. A not-in-my-back-yard issue….

by Michael Tilley -

Riff Raff: The dumb cycle

The television ad for an Arkansas GOP candidate for a federal office blasts, “Babies, Borders, Bullets.” The complex is oversimplified because, you know, don’t think; be enraged. Be alarmed. And…

by Michael Tilley -

Riff Raff: A welcome pivot

Self-recognizing a hubris-induced mistake and turning to humility-driven corrective collaboration often results in a better outcome. So it is with the Fort Smith Board of Directors and their collective pivot…

by Michael Tilley -

Riff Raff: The big ask

It was a sudden and surprising move, if not a perplexing pick that remains an enigma despite an explanation from the Fort Smith Public School Board president. Deputy Superintendent Dr….

by Michael Tilley -

Riff Raff: Local problems

The Fort Smith Public School Board on June 22 rejected a bid recommendation by a Texas-based company managing the district’s $120 million millage construction and instead gave the work to…

by Michael Tilley -

Riff Raff: Calling the system an SOB

Editor’s note: This essay first appeared Dec. 28, 2008, on The City Wire, now Talk Business & Politics. It continues to be an appropriate note to begin a new year….

by Michael Tilley -

Riff Raff: A Veterans Day remembrance

Editor’s note: This essay about my grandfather, Raymond Evans, was first published November 2002. Raymond Evans died Dec. 6, 2008. There is no expiration on the need to remember Veterans…

by Michael Tilley -

Riff Raff: 3 concerns with Issue 3

As a former chamber of commerce employee, Issue 3 is appealing. As an Arkansan interested in good public policy, the appeal wanes. Issue 3 would amend Arkansas’ Constitution “to encourage…

by Michael Tilley -

Natural gas, budgets and BS

Some in the upper levels of Fort Smith city leadership have said the city has cut expenses as much as possible and the best/only way to fix budget holes is…

by Michael Tilley -

An unexpected cavalry

Downtown Fort Smith was alive. Alive with “special energy.” A new element of culture was brought to the city. The “cool switch” was turned on for Fort Smith. Those are…

by Michael Tilley -

Carter’s charity

It’s not likely I’ll soon praise the presidency of Jimmy Carter, if for no other reason than dad would disown me. He is not a fan of the Georgia peanut…

by Michael Tilley -

Escalating the avoidance

Recent commentary suggesting citizens should avoid escalation during police interactions to avoid negative outcomes serves only to escalate avoidance of what is a broad and complex problem. Reducing violence and…

by Michael Tilley -

Breaking the law

The trust and transparency deficit with Fort Smith municipal government took another hit Friday (July 10) when Mayor Sandy Sanders admitted – maybe unwittingly – that the Board broke state…

by Michael Tilley -

The jobs hole

Recent numbers reflect well on the Fort Smith metro economy, but there remains a four-letter word that makes unpleasant a more in-depth conversation: Jobs. Positive economic headlines have been frequent…

by The City Wire staff -

You should know Jack

Let’s take a moment and talk about the late Jack White and leadership and paperclips. Jack is remembered by the Jack White Legislative Golf Classic held each year by the…