News on the Wire

Elvii invade Chaffee

Elvis really is everywhere. He was in four different places at once Thursday afternoon (Oct. 1) while touring the Barbershop Museum at Fort Chaffee. The Barbershop Museum is in the…

Chamber health care forum series begins with panel discussion

Dr. Todd Stewart and his opposition to more government interference in health care is expected to be just one element of an Oct. 8 health care forum sponsored by the…

Parade of Homes ready for fall show

How would you like to prepare a home for more than 10,000 guests? That’s what members of the Greater Fort Smith Association of Home Builders are doing with the Showcase…

National economic news comes with good and bad mix

Economic reports continue with a mix of good and bad news. First, the good news. The U.S. Commerce Department reported Wednesday (Sept. 30) that economic activity fell just 0.7% in…

Fort Smith metro jobless rate drops to 7.1% (Updated)

The Fort Smith metro unemployment rate during August fell to 7.1%, a welcome decline from the 7.7% posted in July and the 7.8% in June. However, the rate is still…

Sen. Lincoln conducts first meeting as Agri committee chair

U.S. Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., the first woman to ever chair the powerful U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, gaveled in the first meeting during her new tenure…

Whirlpool to keep R&D jobs in Evansville; no deal for Fort Smith

Whirlpool Corp. announced Wednesday (Sept. 30) that its product development center and the 296 associated jobs will remain in Evansville, Ind. Benton Harbor, Mich.-based Whirlpool announced Aug. 28 it would…

Mars Petcare opens at Chaffee; officials praise workforce

Chris Hunter began his comments at the official grand opening of the 305,000-square-foot Mars Petcare plant at Chaffee Crossing in Fort Smith with a sentiment that captured the mood of…

County, city agree to pursue ‘collaborative’ expansion of Ben Geren Park

In what everyone agreed was an historic meeting, the Sebastian County Quorum Court and the Fort Smith Board of Directors expressed clear consensus Tuesday night (Sept. 29) on moving forward…

Area sports council pushes for sports tourism facility

Ed Devero and Travis Stephens have turned up the dial on a plan they have pushed for years that would see the construction of a sports complex they say could…

Area home inventory up, average prices flat

The number of homes for sale in Fort Smith and Van Buren is up 12% between January and Sept. 28, with the average list price of new and existing homes…

Fort Smith, Sebastian County sales tax slide continues

Fort Smith sales tax collections continue to see double-digit declines, with the city’s portion of the one-percent countywide tax down more than 12% on July purchases. The city’s two 1%…

Community leaders comment on mayoral race

The race for Fort Smith mayor is heating up early, with Sandy Sanders and Fort Smith Mayor Ray Baker announcing they will be candidates for the 2010 election cycle. If…

U.S. trucking sector sees gains; local truckers remain wary

Officials at Fort Smith-based ABF Freight System are guardedly optimistic about a report suggesting an improvement in the national trucking sector. A nationwide recession in the freight industry began in…

Gov. Beebe heads to Europe on trade tour

Gov. Mike Beebe will conduct a trade trip to several European countries with the goal of visiting companies who conduct business in Arkansas, according to a report from TalkBusiness.net Based…

Fort Smith chamber begins busy 3-month effort to reorganize

Editor’s note: The City Wire interviewed Paul Harvel, president of the Fort Smith Regional Chamber of Commerce, following a Friday morning general chamber membership meeting. The aggressive schedule began Friday…

Fort Smith Mayor Ray Baker to seek sixth term

Fort Smith Mayor Ray Baker announced Thursday afternoon he will seek a sixth term as mayor, and in doing so was critical of those who think the mayor should have…

September vehicles sales nationwide predicted to drop almost 30%

Edmunds.com is forecasting that September auto sales will be down 29.9% from September 2008 and 41% lower than the Cash-for-Clunkers bonanza in August 2009. The company, closely watched as the…

Arkansas natural gas industry execs to talk shop in Fort Smith

More than 220 officials with Arkansas’ natural gas industry will hit Fort Smith on Sunday (Sept. 27) to discuss the proposed federal cap and trade legislation, state energy efficiency programs…

Flynn prepared for State Fair; keeps Kay Rodgers Park busy

story and photo by Doug Kelley Every year in Fort Smith, this time of year means fair time. For eight days, people from all over stream into Kay Rodgers Park…