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A recent conversation resulted in a challenge to consider and list three big-picture things Fort Smith regional business and civic leaders might do to enhance our strengths, address our weakness, pursue our opportunities and squash our threats.

It seemed like a good mental exercise.

What follows are three broad submissions from the narrow brain of yours truly. What follows the three submissions are a few caveats. What may follow that, Kind Reader, are your inputs as comments.

CONNECTIONS
We as a region (community leaders in Fort Smith, Greenwood and Van Buren, for starters) must actively pursue open, non-partisan and proactive relationships with political and bureaucratic (agency and organizational) leaders in Little Rock, Washington and Northwest Arkansas. If we don’t learn to play the game, we’ll never be in the game.

COMMERCE
The key players in the region (University of Arkansas at Fort Smith, city of Fort Smith, city of Van Buren, Fort Smith and Van Buren chambers of commerce, Western Arkansas Planning and Development District, Chaffee Crossing — just to name a few) must formalize an aggressive and progressive plan to achieve quality (higher-paying, higher-order tech) socio-economic growth in the region. This formalizing could come in many forms (new economic development group, contract with a chamber, etc.), but it should come with clear goals, expectations and accountability measures.

COLLABORATION
The primary taxing authorities in the region (cities of Fort Smith, Greenwood and Van Buren; Fort Smith Central Business Improvement District; Crawford and Sebastian county governments) should develop a comprehensive quality-of-place plan (I hate such buzzwords, but it best describes a broad meaning) so that as a region we maximize our collective and limited financial and physical resources.

CAVEATS
• No more outside consultants and lengthy public hearing processes about how to stimulate quality of life assets, or engender better job creation or how to play better with folks around the state and nation. We know what needs to happen. We’re smart enough to make things happen. We just have to find leaders capable of eschewing ego, political turf, credit-seeking and other progress obstacles.

• Speaking of leadership, the Fort Smith regional business community must be more proactive in seeking quality political and organizational leaders, more proactive in supporting them, and MUCH more proactive in holding them accountable.

• Speaking of leadership again, we might consider the reformation of the Leadership Fort Smith program. I am a graduate of the program and an unqualified believer in the necessity of having a regional leadership program. However, the program has not had the benefit of a good top-down review in its more than 21-year history. And while the program has pushed a few good people into civic leadership, it has become more of a resume builder than a region builder.

• We must do a better job of challenging the aginners. Too often, the aginners oppose ideas and/or projects with the following arguments:
“We don’t need a new tax because City/County government wastes a lot of money.” Really? Prove it.
“Building this (residential/commercial/industrial project) will ruin the nearby community.” Really? Prove it.
“This City/County program and/or project is just to benefit a few special interests.” Really? Prove it.
“That kind of thing might work in (insert any U.S. metro area), but it won’t work here.” Really? Prove it.
The point is, it is easy to destroy ideas by fostering fear and suspicion, and difficult to create successful solutions that require people to move and think outside their comfort zone.
To be sure, there are valid reasons to oppose government programs and projects. But knee-jerk reactions that include superficial opposition to taxes, the Not-In-My-Back-Yard motive or ad hominem attacks against a person for group are often without merit. Indeed, most aginner attacks are often an attempt to discourage honest debate. The next time you hear an aginner spout, ask them what collective efforts at societal improvement they supported or solutions they proposed within the past five years.

• We must believe in ourselves. Uvalde Lindsey, the former and legendary director of the Northwest Arkansas Council and now a Northwest Arkansas state representative, has said the Fort Smith area has good leaders. He once remarked that the region possesses “people that are strong in their convictions, yet wise in how they handle the tasks that must be accomplished.” He offered that remark with a caveat.
“If,” Lindsey noted, “Fort Smith can bind its leadership together in a united vision, with clear focus on common goals and objectives; and that then speaks and acts with a single and unselfish voice, the region can accomplish great things.”

It seemed like a good mental exercise.