Fort Smith: A great place to die

I recently had an “Aha!” moment. I’ve worried about the Greater Fort Smith Region’s lack of economic growth, the loss of our youth to other cities and states in order to take advantage of career opportunities, and the need for a higher percentage of the population to have earned college degrees.

My fear that Fort Smith will stagnate and begin a slow death is based my observations of an exodus by many of our young adults to other places to work and live and a slow erosion of our population.

So what was my “Aha!” revelation? Fort Smith is what it is and we need to accept that it isn’t an economic powerhouse. We didn’t birth Walmart or Tyson Foods. It may be losing much of its youth to economic opportunity in other areas of the country, but those who remain at home aren’t leftovers. They need opportunities to make a life in Fort Smith and we have many great businesses here that provide opportunities. But maybe we are looking at the wrong path to prosperity.

Consider this bullet list of what is good about life in Fort Smith:
• Real estate is still comparatively cheap to most areas of the country. This allows more people the chance to afford their own home and have a yard big enough to garden.

• Fort Smith has excellent city services and a system of public transportation.

• We have a great public library, Fort Smith Little Theatre, The Fort Smith Regional Art Museum, and the world class Fort Smith Symphony. Add to the list the Western Arkansas Ballet, a national historic site, several farmer’s markets, and great public schools.

• Soon Fort Smith will be the home to the one of a kind U.S. Marshals Museum.

• We have the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith where area residents can get an affordable college education and participate in lifelong learning.

• We are close to Fayetteville, Bentonville and Rogers. Fayetteville’s Walton Art Center provides a full schedule of live entertainment; Rogers’s Pinnacle Hills has most of the high end stores that Fort Smith lacks; and Bentonville has a world class art museum, Crystal Bridges. We have access to all that Northwest Arkansas offers without the daily traffic problems characterized by the constant sighting of wrecked vehicles.

• We have plenty of churches and casinos for the over fifty crowd to spend their days with friends.

• We have two hospitals and both hospitals have fitness centers and offer fitness classes such as water aerobics and yoga.

The bottom line is what we lack to attract young adults to immigrate to or remain in our community we make up with attributes that make life great for an older demographic. And consider the benefits of having an older population.

A community focus to make our area attractive to the AARP set could bring an influx of people with discretionary money to spend. Growth in service industries needed to support an older population doesn’t require as many college degrees to staff their business employment needs.

If Fort Smith could attract people to relocate here as they retire, think of the wealth of knowledge Fort Smith could import. Age is almost a prerequisite to experience and wisdom. Retired people generally want to continue to contribute to life, have time to volunteer for the right causes, and tend to be more politically involved.

When well established as a city that promotes a lifestyle that caters to and benefits the over 50 crowd, our youth we raised and educated and left Fort Smith for economic and career pursuits will be attracted to return home.

This idea may be a back door to Fort Smith’s future growth and vibrancy, but it might work. We already have a great infrastructure for an older population in place. Fort Smith could be a great place to die too. It’s already a great place to live.

Oh well, it’s an idea.