by - May 17, 2015 11:26 pm
Trust, transparency and trails
Funding for a 35-mile multi-use trail system in Fort Smith wasn’t rejected because voters don’t like trails. It wasn’t about the trails. Never was. It was about trust. It was…
Author: Michael Tilley
by - May 15, 2015 5:45 am
Production Shift At Rheem Could Cost 100-150 Jobs In Fort Smith
It’s one of those classic “good news, bad news” situations at Rheem’s Fort Smith plant. Two productions lines will end at the plant by the summer, reducing employment by as…
by - May 15, 2015 5:40 am
Armstrong Bank Eager To Expand Into Fort Smith, Northwest Arkansas
Memorial Day weekend will be a working weekend for the signage company hired by Muskogee, Okla.-based Armstrong Bank. The weekend will see Armstrong signs replace Benefit Bank signs in the…
by - May 14, 2015 5:55 am
Different Paths Deliver Better Days for Truckers
It’s tempting to simply credit an improved national economy for improved finances at the trucking operations of the four publicly held companies based in Arkansas. But that temptation fails to account for a lot. Read more here.
by - May 13, 2015 9:15 am
Whirlpool Suggests ‘Strategic Demolition’ For Shuttered Fort Smith Plant
A Whirlpool vice president said Tuesday (May 12) that a successful redevelopment plan for the company’s shuttered manufacturing plant and associated 95 acres will likely require “strategic demolition” and a…
by - May 13, 2015 5:02 am
Eureka Springs Voters Support Controversial Ordinance 2223
Eureka Springs voters on Tuesday (May 12) voted to keep an ordinance approved by the city council in February that sought to prevent employment and housing discrimination based on sexual…
by - May 12, 2015 9:45 am
Former AEDC Boss: Lockheed Deal Would Be A Big Win For Arkansas
With one of the worst-kept economic development secrets officially out in the open, former Arkansas jobs chief Grant Tennille said the possible expansion of Lockheed’s Camden operation to manufacture a new military vehicle will have benefits far beyond that city’s industrial park.
by - May 11, 2015 6:18 pm
Zero Mountain Expands With Trucking And Logistics Operation
Zero Mountain is more than six months into expanding with its Zero Mountain Logistics company. The new division employs 30 people, including 17 truck drivers, with plans to employ 50…
by - May 7, 2015 4:11 pm
A fortunate son
A lot has changed in Mom’s world. The world in 1949, the year of her birth, was a crazy place. Europe was rebuilding its continental economy, the Soviets were rattling…
by - May 5, 2015 7:16 am
USA Truck Ends Seven Years Of Q1 Losses With $1.1 Million Gain
First quarter net income for Van Buren-based USA Truck was $1.116 million, a big improvement over the $1.589 million loss in the first quarter of 2014, and the 10th consecutive…
by - May 4, 2015 5:02 am
ArcBest First Quarter Profit Ends Seven Year Q1 Loss Streak
First quarter net income of $745,000 for Fort Smith-based ArcBest was well below what the market expected, but it was the company’s first first-quarter profit for the first time in…
by - April 29, 2015 5:59 pm
Hearing On Arkansas Gay Marriage Ban To Await U.S. Supreme Court Ruling
The U.S. Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals has delayed a decision on the constitutionality of Arkansas’ ban on same-sex marriage pending the outcome of a case before the U.S. Supreme…
by - April 26, 2015 5:47 pm
The Earth Day thing, revisited
The urge to save humanity is almost always a false-face for the urge to rule it. – H.L. Mencken Recently toured several of the fine museums in Chicago. The city…
by - April 23, 2015 1:12 pm
A lack of confidence
Raising of Fort Smith sewer rates in a process that will more than triple the average bill by 2017 is not a problem. It’s not welcome news, but we’ve been…
by - April 15, 2015 5:56 pm
ArcBest CEO Judy McReynolds: ‘Let’s Get The Shovels Digging’
With Gov. Asa Hutchinson and Mike Preston, his new jobs boss, in attendance, the mood was celebratory at the formal groundbreaking for the $30-plus million new corporate headquarters for Fort Smith-based ArcBest.
by - April 14, 2015 7:43 am
Compass Report: Top Arkansas Metro Economies End 2014 On A Good Note
Economic conditions in Arkansas’ three largest metro areas were relatively healthy in the fourth quarter of 2014. Small improvements were seen in the central Arkansas and Fort Smith areas, and…
by - April 6, 2015 12:00 pm
‘Serious’ Medical Condition Sidelines USA Truck CEO, Share Price Declines
USA Truck CEO John Simone, 53, is on an indefinite leave because of a “serious medical condition,” with Tom Glaser appointed interim chief operations officer to lead the company. Company…
by - April 3, 2015 8:24 am
Michael Tilley: Hammerschmidt’s Passing A Reminder There Are Some You Can’t Replace
Editor’s note: This guest opinion column is courtesy of Michael Tilley with The City Wire. Having watched and interviewed elected officials for more than 30 years, there are only two…
by - April 1, 2015 11:48 pm
Some you can’t replace
Having watched and interviewed elected officials for more than 30 years, there are only two with which it was easily and immediately evident why they were popular and successful: Bill…
by - March 27, 2015 12:02 am
NWA Population Rises Above 500,000; Fort Smith, Pine Bluff Decline
New estimates from the U.S. Census show that Northwest Arkansas’ population grew 8.3% between April 2010 and July 2014, while the Fort Smith metro census estimate declined 0.31% in the…