Classic Blog - Talk Business & Politics

Business

Fort Smith Board approves climate grant funds; sets hearing date for sewer rate increases

Business

Berryville receives nearly $750,000 to study waste-to-energy project

Fort Smith

Attorney for group opposing new prison removed from prison planning meeting

Latest news

Fort Smith Board approves climate grant funds; sets hearing date for sewer rate increases

The Fort Smith Board of Directors in a narrow vote again approved Tuesday (Jan. 7) participation in a $14.5 million federal Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG) program to provide funds…

Berryville receives nearly $750,000 to study waste-to-energy project

The U.S. Department of Energy will provide $745,932 to the city of Berryville to study ways to reduce landfill constraints in Northwest Arkansas and produce fuels from waste, according to…

Attorney for group opposing new prison removed from prison planning meeting

Joey McCutchen, an attorney for the Franklin County & River Valley Coalition in its effort to block a planned state prison, was removed Tuesday (Jan. 7) from a “high-level project…

Commodity price declines cut into soybean crop profits in 2024

Arkansas soybean farmers planted more acres and harvested greater yields in 2024 when compared to 2023, but profit margins still were lower for many producers due to a drop in…

Bennett CRE, others join the Northwest Arkansas Council

Rogers-based Bennett Commercial Real Estate was one of the three new members to join the Northwest Arkansas Council in 2024. New members were announced at the council’s annual meeting in…

Arkansas Tourism Ticker: 2% tourism tax revenue on pace to set new record

Arkansas’ 2% tourism tax revenue between January and August was $18.392 million, up 5.2% compared with the $17.482 million in the same period of 2023. The August revenue of $2.254…

Approaching community engagement

Northwest Arkansas has a strong history of community engagement. While it’s true that some companies don’t engage the community – either because they haven’t given it any thought or they…

Loloft opens in Arizona, plans $10 million seed round

Rogers-based commercial real estate startup Loloft recently opened its second industrial co-working space as it prepares for more growth and a $10 million seed round. Loloft opened a 51,902-square-foot industrial…

The Supply Side: Private brands continue to grow retail market share in 2024

Private brands, like Walmart’s Great Value, see continued growth in many categories. According to new data from Numerator, 99.9% of consumers purchased a private-label grocery item in the past 12…

Warren Stephens stepping down as CEO; children assuming new leadership roles

Financial services giant Stephens Inc. announced Tuesday (Jan. 7) that CEO Warren Stephens will retire as CEO immediately after he was selected to serve as U.S. Ambassador to the United…

Paxton Roberts tapped to lead Downtown Springdale Alliance

Downtown Springdale Alliance (DSA) has appointed Paxton Roberts as its new executive director, according to a Tuesday (Jan. 7) news release. He begins in his new role on Monday (Jan….

UAMS receives $2.9 million federal grant for cancer study

A discovery at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) that a viral protein helps a cancer-associated herpesvirus evade the immune system has led to a five-year, $2.9 million…

Arkansas Agriculture Hall of Fame to add 6

Six inductees will be added to the Arkansas Agriculture Hall of Fame, reflective of industry-changing work in aquaculture, forestry, rice, poultry and cattle as well as the University of Arkansas…

Ritter Communications to spend $5 million on internet expansion in El Dorado

Ritter Communications will launch a $5 million infrastructure project in El Dorado to expand its RightFiber internet service. Construction for the project is expected to be complete by the end…

Trent Minner to join GC Advisors

Arkansas-based full-service lobbying and government relations firm, GC Advisors, announced Monday (Jan. 6) it has hired Trent Minner. Minner was formerly regulatory administrator for the Arkansas Department of Finance and…

State Senator Kim Hammer to run for Secretary of State

State Sen. Kim Hammer, R-Benton, said Monday (Jan. 6) he will run for Arkansas Secretary of State in 2026. Hammer has served in the State Senate since 2019 and previously…

Real Deals: 110 acres of Benton County pastureland sells for $7.5 million

More than 110 acres of pastureland west of Centerton in Benton County recently changed hands in separate transactions for a combined $7.59 million. The purchase price equals $68,701 per acre….

Arkansas awarded $17 million grant to support maternal health initiatives

Arkansas has been awarded a $17 million grant, the Transforming Maternal Health (TMaH) Model, from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services…

New continuing resolution could provide up to $10 billion in additional aid to farmers

Congress recently passed a continuing resolution (CR) to fund the federal government through March and one provision in it will provide expanded aid for crop farmers. The CR extends the…

November job numbers up in all Arkansas metro areas

As was the case in October, all eight of the metro areas in or connected to Arkansas had job gains in November. Northwest Arkansas had the lowest metro rate at…