Author: Michael Tilley

Michael Tilley

Most Arkansas metro areas post job gains in May

Northwest Arkansas had an almost 3% year-over-year job gain, and six of the seven metro areas in or connected to Arkansas posted job gains in the May metro jobs report….

Digs restaurant to replace Mad Ox bar at the Bakery District

Destiney Cameron, a co-owner and manager of AJ’s Oyster House in downtown Fort Smith, plans to soon open Digs, a new restaurant just a few blocks away in the Bakery…

Dog Haus to open restaurants in NWA, Fort Smith, Little Rock

Pasadena, Calif-based Dog Haus plans to expand its national footprint with eight locations in Arkansas, including at least four in Northwest Arkansas and one in Fort Smith. The restaurant company…

New Fort Smith Boys Home facility a ‘major step forward’ for the program

Officials with the Fort Smith Boys Home are set to open a new facility that represents a more than $2 million investment in the agency’s goal of “changing lives” and…

Fort Smith airport traffic numbers up in May, TSA precheck event planned

Traffic at the Fort Smith Regional Airport was up in May, but is down almost 3% in the first five months of 2025. Enplanements at the airport have yet to…

Arkansas GDP up 0.8% in the first quarter, ranks 5th in the nation

Arkansas’ real gross domestic product (GDP) was 0.8% in the first quarter, ranking the state fifth for growth among the 50 states. Personal income grew at an annual rate of…

Water well testing authorized at planned prison site in Franklin County

The Arkansas Board of Corrections (BOC) on Thursday (June 26) voted to authorize up to $50,000 to conduct testing for water well testing at a proposed prison site in Franklin…

Process begins that could result in new Fort Smith water meter system

The Fort Smith Board of Directors has given the green light to allowing city staff to work with Ameresco to develop options to modernize the city’s water meter system, which…

Slackwater harbor construction in Van Buren to begin in early 2026

Construction on the slackwater harbor in Van Buren along the Arkansas River is set to begin in April 2026, with completion of the long-awaited regional infrastructure asset estimated to be…

Plan approved to begin work on consolidated 911 center in Sebastian County

Wes Milam has a lot to do. Between now and early 2027, he’s been tasked to lead an effort to consolidate 911 operations in Sebastian County that includes millions of…

Arkansas jobless rate holds at 3.7% in May, job numbers up 0.9%

Arkansas’ job trends in May were similar to April. An almost 10% rise in the number of jobless and a relative decline in the number of employed resulting in an…

Report estimates possible Fort Smith metro losses in Medicaid, SNAP funds

Crawford and Sebastian counties could lose almost $600 million in Medicaid funding over a decade if proposed federal legislation is approved, according to “rough” estimates from the Arkansas Advocates for…

Director named for consolidated 911 center in Sebastian County

The hiring of Wes Milam as director of public safety communications for the City of Fort Smith is a key step in the consolidation of 911 operations in the city…

Director Catsavis ends push for hire-fire change, laments business leader lobbying

Fort Smith City Director Christina Catsavis will end her push to shift the hire-fire power with department heads from the city administrator to the board, but she is discouraged about…

Van Buren chamber staff ready to move into new offices

The Van Buren Chamber of Commerce is less than two weeks away from a long-awaited move into its newly renovated offices at 111 N. 12th St., according to chamber President…

Hire-fire shift proposal rejected by Fort Smith Board

An effort by Fort Smith Director Christina Catsavis to shift the city’s hire-fire authority over department heads from the city administrator to the board was short-lived, with the board voting…

Fort Smith Board approves highest possible sewer rate for Arkoma

The Fort Smith Board of Directors on Tuesday (June 17) rejected two sewer rate options for the city of Arkoma, which by default sets the rate at $8.75 per ccf….

U.S. Marshals Museum lays off employees

The U.S. Marshals Museum recently laid off employees as part of “difficult choices” to respond to a downturn in visitors, according to Benjamin Johnson, museum president and CEO. Johnson said…