Best & Worst of 2010

(For 2010’s Top 10 Business Stories, click here.)

BEST RETRO BUSINESS

The Starlight Skatium in Fayetteville is the only rink in Washington County. Owners Tiffany and Neil Caston have done a bang-up job of resurrecting the disco sport, as well as an eyesore of a building on College Avenue.

WORST POTENTIAL DECISION

Drunk-driving is dumb and dangerous. It’s also costly.

Readers learned just how costly when the Business Journal explored the DWI “industry” in January. For starters, offenders typically face a bond of at least $1,000.

After that, court costs, fines, legal fees and such add up in a hurry. That’s not even considering inflated insurance rates or, worse, the injuries and fatalaities often associated with the crime.

So, with New Year’s Eve right around the corner, it might pay to heed this warning from Fayetteville attorney Jason Wales: “When you get into the DWI world, there is a fee and expense around every corner.”

BEST REGULATOR MOVE

As part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act signed by President Barack Obama in July, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said it will retroactively cover some of the deposits lost to customers of ANB Financial.

 The maximum insurance at the time of ANB’s failure was $100,000, but the FDIC raised the insurance to $250,000 temporarily at the end of that same year. The Dodd-Frank Act makes the higher coverage permanent and will largley reimburse depositors who fell through the cracks.

In November, a group of former ANB employees were granted class action status in their attempt to collect some lost investments from former directors of the bank.

WORST MOVE FOR BUSINESS

While we agree with the Walton Arts Center’s need to have parking readily available for ticket holders, we believe the Fayetteville city council’s decision to charge for most of the spaces downtown is a mistake.

We think – as do many of the business owners in Fayetteville’s entertainment district – it’s a deterrent to casual shopping and dining, thus lowering revenue, thus lowering the city take on taxes.

Time will tell for sure.

BEST INSPIRATION

Commercial real estate honcho Tommy Van Zandt’s return to Sage Partners following a horrific 2009 accident easily was the most uplifting story of 2010.

Van Zandt was paralyzed from the neck down after falling from a ladder while trimming branches during the ice storm that gripped Northwest Arkansas a couple of winters ago. His long, slow – not to mention miraculous – recovery was celebrated by friends and associates far and wide when Van Zandt began showing up at Sage’s Fayetteville office to work again.

“This life that I have now is pretty fabulous,” he said about a year after the fall.

Van Zandt also said one of the things he misses most in life is having the ability to hug people. That doesn’t mean he can’t be on the receiving end, though, so give him one the next time you see him.

Trust us, if just a little bit of his spirit rubs off on you, you’ll be the one feeling fabulous.

BEST FOODIE

Chef Lou Rice, executive chef in residence at NorthWest Arkansas Community College, is out to teach folks how to cook and eat better. He heads up a series of non-credit personal enrichment courses and is even holding corporate teambuilding classes in the kitchen.

He told the Business Journal earlier this year that finer dining and a higher level of cuisine will be a must-have in the next few years as well-heeled tourists come to visit the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

WORST POTENTIAL BILLBOARD

A proposed billboard in Tontitown sounded outlandish, but a spokeswoman at the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals confirmed the organization had contacted a local businessman about the possibility of placing a billboard near the Duggar family home. It was to read: Doggies Multiply Faster Than Duggars. Be Responsible. Always Spay and Neuter.

We’re glad taste and tact won that debate.

BEST POTENTIAL BOON

The December movie, “True Grit,” based on Arkansas author Charles Portis’ novel of the same name, might be the best boost to tourism Arkansas never paid for.

The 1968 book follows 14-year-old Mattie Ross from her home “near Dardanelle” through “Hanging” Judge Isaac Parker’s Fort Smith courthouse into what was then know as Indian Territory as she searches for her father’s killer. The movie, directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, is supposed to be more true to the book than the John Wayne film.

Executive Director of the U.S. Marshals Museum in Fort Smith, Jim Dunn, said, “We’re tickled pink” about the movie and the hype.

We expect a new generation of readers will get turned on to Portis, too.

BEST BUSINESS COACH

More than a few people wondered if University of Arkansas entrepreneurship professor Carol Reeves was the best coach on campus last summer, after she helped student-led startups win almost $1 million in cash, awards and in-kind prizes.

Then Bobby Petrino went and led the Razorbacks to a Sugar Bowl berth, the school’s first BCS trip. Talk about competition.

Whether you call her a coach or a professor, though, Reeves’ value can’t be overstated.

“The truth of it is … she’s a diamond for the university,” Little Rock businessman Frank Fletcher said. “She’s somebody they ought to build a statue of.”

Given her new gig, Reeves is probably too busy to pose for any statue. She recently was named the UA office of research and economic development’s associate vice provost for entrepreneurship, a post that no doubt will help spread her golden touch.

WORST DEPRECIATION

Little Rock resident Haitham Alley and his family purchased land and a building on Fayetteville’s Dickson Street in April. The investors paid First State Bank of Northwest Arkansas $1.35 million for the property. The bank foreclosed in 2009, taking it from Brandon Barber’s Lynnkohn LLC.

Barber paid $5.06 for the property million in 2006.

BEST QUOTE

“You can’t deal with Wal-Mart if you don’t know Retail Link. It’s like The Koran for Muslims. It’s the cornerstone of the culture.” – Con-Agra Foods Inc. executive Clint Lazenby.

BEST STAT

Kathy Deck, director of the University of Arkansas’ Center for Business and Economic Research, can rattle off enough stats to shame the most die-hard fantasy football geek.

Deck unleashed a real eye-popper – even by her standards – when talking recently about employment in Northwest Arkansas. Noting the fact “retail” falls under the “trade, transportation and utility” category, Deck said one out of every five people employed in Northwest Arkansas fits into that category.

BEST COMEBACK

The 1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa never went away, but by the late 1990s bellman Boyd Pyle would walk would-be guests room-to-room until they found one they liked – for a rate of $29 a night.

The historic property took another jolt in 2009, when owner and preservationist extraordinaire Martin Roenigk died in a car accident. Determined to keep Roenigk’s spirit and efforts alive, general manager Jack Moyer buckled down and made some touch decisions.

Those decisions, however, appear to have paid dividends. Revenues at the hotel are up and fresh, innovative programs and promotions have made the Crescent a must-do in Eureka Springs again.

BEST NICHE PRODUCT

Anyone looking to channel their inner Rambo or James Bond might check out the folks at Umarex USA.

Umarex is the Fort Smith-based maker of airguns – or “basically BBs and pellets,” as president and CEO Adam Blalock said – and though he declined to discuss specifics, revenues claim growth of more than 600 percent since 2006.

Evidence is the company’s new facility at Fort Chaffee that came with a price tag of about $8.5 million.

The guns Umarex produces are mirror images of weapons made by Walther, Beretta, and Smith & Wesson, among others. That’s made possible by licensing agreements with those companies.

For the record, Umarex also deals in Airsoft and paintball guns, blank-firing guns and tactical rimfire rifles.

BEST COMMON SENSE

Ever see a new product on a store shelf or TV screen and wonder, “Why didn’t I think of that?”

We do, too.

It’s exactly what we thought, in fact, when we met Todd Richmond, inventor of Dig DeFence.

The product consists of a length of galvanized steel, with eight- or 10-inch spikes at regular intervals. That’s attached to the bottom of practically any fence, and the result is something that keeps “the fence down, your pets or livestock in, and predators out,” Richmond said.

Richmond eventually struck manufacturing and distribution deals, and Dig DeFence is available online and at numerous co-ops throughout the area.

BEST PRODUCT DIVERSIFICATION

Fayetteville’s Penguin Ed’s Bar-B-Que has increased competition (Whole Hog Café, Sassy’s Red House) but not to be deterred, Ed Knight did what many national restaurants have done over the years and turned to breakfast.

We think the offerings at Ed’s new Penguin Café, which is adjacent to the original Bar-B-Que joint on Crossover Road, are some of the best we’ve had.

Everything from sunny-side eggs to sausage-laden gravy smothering savory biscuits, it’s a good old-fashioned country breakfast with a slight city twist.

BEST WORST FOOD

The Funnel Dog. What’s good about a hot dog dipped and fried in funnel cake batter then sprinkled with powdered sugar is also what’s bad about it.

The treat-cum-meal is a home run at Arvest Ballpark and garnered national attention on SI.com in July.