News on the Wire

Fort Smith Town Club to close Jan. 31

The Fort Smith Town Club won’t see its 51st consecutive year of operation. Club Manager Engin Tuncay and Town Club board member Phil White confirmed the club will close Jan….

Whirlpool job boost may be short-term (Corrected)

Whirlpool officials may soon formally announce — possibly as early as Thursday (Dec. 16) — the call back of more than 400 employees to work a second shift to begin…

Fort Smith to assume operation of downtown park

The Fort Smith Board of Directors voted Tuesday (Dec. 15) to enter into an agreement by which the city’s Parks Department would operate The Park at West End. Owned by…

Fort Smith directors to meet with federal lobbyists

Lobbyists hired by the city of Fort Smith will be in town Thursday (Dec. 17) seeking “clear direction” from the city directors, according to a memo from Deputy City Administrator…

Cap-and-trade could kill more than 20,000 Arkansas jobs

Arkansas could lose more than 20,000 jobs by 2030 and the average disposable income of an Arkansan could drop almost $800 a year by 2030 if the federal cap-and-trade bill…

Arkansas Best makes more management moves

It was expected that the upcoming retirement of Robert Davidson as CEO of Fort Smith-based Arkansas Best Corp. would result in several executive transitions within the large transportation holding company….

200-250 high-wage jobs return to Little Rock

More than 200 high-wage telecom jobs could return to Little Rock, which is welcome news following Verizon’s 2008 acquisition of Little Rock-based Alltel which significantly reduced the estimated 3,100 corporate…

Hendricks announces for Sebastian County Judge post

Annie Powell Hendricks has announced she will run for the post of Sebastian County Circuit Court Judge, Division II. Judge Harry Foltz has announced he will retire when his position…

Christmas Honors wraps with candlelight vigil

The Christmas Honors project that placed 12,000 wreaths at the Fort Smith National Cemetery over the weekend wrapped up the event with a Monday night (Dec. 14) candlelight vigil around…

Fort Smith, Van Buren miss out on tourism award list

That no event, company or person from the Fort Smith/Van Buren area was nominated for the prestigious Henry Awards is a reflection that “there are a whole lot of really…

The City Wire special report: Mental illness hits one in five persons

Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of stories on mental illness issues. Throughout 2010 The City Wire will attempt to post at least one story a month…

‘Christmas Honors’ places 12,000 wreaths at Fort Smith National Cemetery

photos by Joel Rafkin; story by Michael Tilley The cold, cutting wind was no match for the hundreds of families, veterans and volunteers who showed up early Saturday (Dec. 12)…

2010 Fort Smith Air Show is canceled

Scheduling conflicts have resulted in a cancellation of the Fort Smith Air Show, according to a statement from the 188th Fighter Wing. The unit released the following statement Friday (Dec….

The City Wire video: Preparing 12,000 wreaths for the National Cemetery

The following is a short (around 6 minutes) video clip that documents some of the work conducted Friday (Dec. 11) to prepare 12,000 wreaths for placement on Saturday at the…

Federal bill could push $1.6 million to Fort Smith area

Millions in federal funding for Arkansas agencies, cities and projects were included in a group of fiscal year 2010 spending bills approved Friday (Dec. 11) in the U.S. House of…

Volunteers swamp wreath project; Boozman to attend Saturday event

Volunteers showed up in greater numbers than expected to help prepare the 12,000 wreaths that will on Saturday (Dec. 12) be placed at all the headstones at the Fort Smith…

Stanley Reed announces run for U.S. Senate

The Republican field running for U.S. Senate is a little more crowded. Roby Brock, a content partner with The City Wire, reports that former Arkansas Farm Bureau President Stanley Reed…

United Way wraps 2009 campaign; no totals released

Editor’s note: Unlike past years, the United Way did not provide a tally on its collections for the campaign. story by Linda Kaufenberg More than 100 friends of United Way…

Metro area foreclosure activity moderates in November

November foreclosure activity in the Fort Smith metro area was up more than 23% compared to November 2008, but an improvement over the 118.3% jump in October. Foreclosures in the…

Van Buren A&P sets 2010 budget

story by Marla Cantrell [email protected] It’s been a tough year for the Van Buren Advertising and Promotion Commission. Director Maryl Koeth said at the Wednesday night (Dec. 9) monthly meeting…