Greenwood sales tax revenue up more than 7% through November
by January 31, 2025 12:45 pm 140 views
Greenwood sales tax revenue through November 2024 totaled $4.018 million, up 7.07% compared with the same period in 2023, and up 38.6% compared with the same period in 2020, according to the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration (DFA) .
Barring any surprises when DFA posts the December revenue, the city should post relatively healthy gains in 2024 revenue, which is an indicator of consumer spending. By comparison, revenue from the City of Fort Smith’s 1% street sales tax was up 1.4% in 2024.
As to why a city with a population hovering below 10,000 for the last five years would see such an increase, the answer remains something of a mystery. An explanation might include the effects of the COVID pandemic, during which revenue lost by bricks-and-mortar retailers was more than replaced by online shopping, the sales tax for which is collected locally.
“We did well with online sales. We’re keeping the recycling center busy, for sure,” noted Greenwood Mayor Doug Kinslow. “The best answer is, it’s the general way it is. You do the best you can with what you’ve got. Fingers crossed.”
About 75% of the tax revenue is used to support local parks, street projects, and the fire department. Projects requiring additional funding are supplemented by the state.
“We do a lot of grants with ARDOT (Arkansas Department of Transportation) for trails and sidewalks. That helps us get over the line,” Kinslow said.
According to Kinslow, the city is expected to double in size by the year 2030.
“Our biggest employee is the school district,” Kinslow said.
The mayor believes the foreign military pilot training center now active at Ebbing Air National Guard Base in Fort Smith will help the city’s tax revenue continue to grow.
“The F-35 project is already having an impact,” said Kinslow. “Folks from Lockheed Martin are making Greenwood their home.”
Some of those homes, according to Kinslow, are in the new East Village subdivision. The subdivision expects to add more than 250 homes to the community and its tax base.
“We call it ‘Area 251,’” joked Kinslow.
Kinslow believes the growth in population and overall economic activity is welcome even in a city that he says values its small-town feel.
“We’re a bedroom community, no doubt about that,” he said. “We don’t have a problem with that. People are looking for – I don’t know if ‘quiet’ is the right word. We’re not this bustling town, and some people like that. Some might like us to go back to 2,500. We’re open-armed as far as I’m concerned.”