Business

USA Truck launches scholarship program

USA Truck announced Friday (Jan. 14) a scholarship program expected to help 10 children of employees attend college or a technical school in the fall of 2011. The USA Truck…

J.C. Watts to speak at Fort Smith chamber meeting

The head of the Washington D.C.-based lobbying firm contracted to lobby for the city of Fort Smith will be the speaker at the Jan. 28 annual meeting of the Fort…

St. Edward has a COW for EHR use

A patient at St. Edward Mercy Medical Center in Fort Smith should not be surprised if a COW is rolled into the room. But this COW will not urge you…

Metro foreclosure actions up 16.5% in 2010

Foreclosure actions on properties in the Fort Smith region were up more than 16% in 2010, continuing a troubling trend that has seen regional foreclosure actions increase more than 164%…

November tourism tax collections decline

Despite a November decline, hospitality tax collections in Fort Smith and Van Buren continue to indicate that the regional business and leisure travel economy is trying to recover from a…

Area building permit values down in 2010

Despite a December that saw the collective value of building permits issued in Fort Smith, Greenwood and Van Buren increase 103.6% over December 2009, permit values for 2010 in the…

Fort Smith board seeks details on tourism merger plan

The Fort Smith Board of Directors is expected on Jan. 25 to review the legal structure of a plan to fund and operate the Fort Smith Convention Center using a…

Postal union president argues against mail consolidation

Thomas Henry isn’t buying the notion that closing the mail processing center in Fort Smith (on 74th Street) will save money. The United States Postal Service announced Dec. 3 it…

What does 2011 mean for small business?

This is a great time of year for small businesses to turn year end reflections turn into New Year actions.

ABB, Baldor extend tender offer

Officials with ABB and Baldor Electric Co. announced early Tuesday (Jan. 11) they were extending the tender offer to Jan. 19 for the more than 13% of shares not tendered…

Area chambers prep for Legislative Session

The chambers of commerce in Fort Smith and Van Buren are gearing up for the 88th Arkansas General Assembly with the simple goal of protecting and supporting a few key…

Fort Smith enplanements up almost 10% in 2010

Enplanements at the Fort Smith Regional Airport totaled 86,129 during 2010, up 9.81% over 2009 — an increase that ends two consecutive years of enplanement declines at the airport. Traffic…

Gosack contract, Chaffee, Convention Center on board agenda

On Tuesday the Fort Smith Board of Directors will convene for a short regular voting session to approve a contract for City Administrator Ray Gosack that sets an annual salary…

Baldor, election changes top the news cycle in 2010

The top story of 2010 was shaping up to be a contest between the changes in faces caused by the November election and the sometimes chaotic issues and actions within…

Regional bankruptcies and incorporations

Following are recent bankruptcy and incorporation filings from Crawford, Franklin, Logan and Sebastian counties. The information is provided by The Daily Record. a Little Rock-based news and legal information publisher….

Tyson Partnership succession plans revealed

When Don Tyson died earlier today (Jan. 6), so did the majority voice in the Tyson Limited Partnership that controlled Springdale-based Tyson Foods Inc. — one of the world’s largest…

Don Tyson dies of cancer (Updated)

Don J. Tyson, a college dropout who grew his father’s chicken production business to a Fortune 500 conglomerate, died early Thursday (Jan. 6) morning. The 80-year old Springdale native was…

Aviation company to add 300 jobs in Blytheville

Aviation Repair Technologies (ART), an aircraft and component repair company, announced Wednesday (Jan. 5) a facility expansion at the Arkansas Aeroplex in Blytheville. The Arkansas Aeroplex is a multi-modal transportation…

$2.6 million ‘Movie Lounge’ project back on track

The Movie Lounge is back on, with Dwight Curry and Lynn Curry Weidman ready to move forward on a $2.6 million project that will create up to 60 jobs and…

Area jobless rate 7.9% in November

The Fort Smith metro area jobless rate reached 7.9% in November, unchanged from an October unemployment rate that was revised up to 7.9% after initially posted as 7.8%. Also, the…