Special Mention, Greenest Municipality: City of Fayetteville

Fayetteville’s reputation for environmentalism hasn’t always been seen in the light it is now.

Banning billboards, limiting heights of signs and buildings and the woman who placed herself up a tree in a grove where Kohl’s now sits cemented Fayetteville’s image as a tree-hugging anti-business college town.

Lately, as sales tax dollars have increasingly stayed in Benton County, business interests have wondered if Fayetteville was reaping the fruit of choosing to go green over greenbacks.

This generally held perception is being turned on its head as the eco-friendly nature of Fayetteville makes it one of the nation’s top destination cities for the coveted “green collar” jobs both presidential candidates routinely talk about creating.

Mayor Dan Coody saw opportunity in the sustainability initiatives announced by Wal-Mart Stores Inc. in 2005; his 2006 State of the City address outlining goals for Fayetteville has already paid dividends in addition to putting Fayetteville in the national spotlight.

Fayetteville has earned press coverage from Japan to Scandanavia, from the New York Times to Newsweek, and the green business community has followed. BioBased Inc., which uses Arkansas-grown soy to produce spray foam insulation, and logistics provider CaseStack Inc. have moved headquarters to Fayetteville and companies from Sweden and Iceland are eyeing the city as well.

Coody convinced the City Council to create a director of sustainability position. The position has already saved $250,000 more than it cost. A 9 percent average annual increase in utility costs since 1995 was reversed to a 7.8 percent decrease in 2007 as city buildings competed to be the “biggest losers” in curbing usage.

The city’s vehicle fleet will use 100,000 gallons of Arkansas-produced biodiesel in 2007, more than 20 percent of its total. The city recycling program diverted 48 percent of the waste stream in 2007, resulting in a $142,000 savings in landfill costs.

Coody has announced this is his last term in office, but he remains worried about his successor keeping the green momentum going.

“Whoever sits in this chair has to have a passion for it,” Coody said. “They have to have it in their heart and their head. I’m concerned what we’ve started won’t be sustained.”

(See more of the greenest offices in Northwest Arkansas by clicking here.)