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Street advisory committee approves Fort Smith’s $133 million capital...
The Fort Smith capital improvement plan (CIP) advisory committee for streets, bridges, and associated drainage approved a $133 million 5-year CIP starting in 2018 with a $29.9 million spend. The...
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Fort Smith building activity underperforms in September, back into the...
August giveth, September taketh away. After a big upswing from Van Buren and Greenwood that placed the Fort Smith metro region’s building activity 3% ahead for the year, a poor September performance...
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Fort Smith Board approves zoning to make way for controversial Dollar General
A planned Dollar General store that stirred controversy at a recent Fort Smith planning commission meeting has won approval to move forward from the city’s Board of Directors. The Board — acting in...
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Van Buren mayoral race gets one candidate, Mayor Freeman endorses
Filing deadlines for the Van Buren mayoral race are not until July 2018, but there is already one candidate and one endorsement. Van Buren City Planner Joe Hurst has announced his candidacy for the...
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Audit of Fort Smith Police Department finds ‘actionable’ discrepancies in...
Fort Smith Police Chief Nathaniel Clark took office on Jan. 9 after being hired to replace former Chief Kevin Lindsey in late 2016. One of his first actions was to request an audit of the department...
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Parrot Island Waterpark managers ask Fort Smith, Sebastian County for $1.5...
The Fort Smith Board of Directors and Sebastian County Quorum Court will soon consider the possibility of expanding Parrot Island Waterpark facilities with a two-slide expansion at a cost of around...
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Fort Smith’s 2017 Parade of Homes’ kicks off with natural gas-friendly...
The 2017 Parade of Homes, presented by the Greater Fort Smith Association of Home Builders (GFSAHB), kicked off Thursday night (Oct. 5) with a VIP reception from this year’s Showcase Home at 7020...
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Baldor exec: ‘Students need a plan and a skill’
Students today need to graduate high school with two things: a plan and a skill. That was the key takeaway from Jason Green, vice-president of human resources for Baldor, in his Friday (Oct. 6) address...
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Fort Smith School Board welcomes new member, okays 5% or higher pay increases
One week after bidding farewell to Dr. Deanie Mehl as Fort Smith school board president, fellow board members welcomed new member Greg Magness at Monday’s (Oct. 9) committee of the whole meeting....
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New meters could boost Fort Smith water bills by an average 21.3% next year
Approximately one in four water customers in the city of Fort Smith could soon see an average increase of 21.3% on their water bills. Fort Smith Utilities Director Jerry Walters explained at a Tuesday...
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Officials remain hopeful for intermodal port, but former river operator says...
Fort Smith area government officials remain supportive of an effort to build an intermodal facility in the region, with Fort Smith City Administrator Carl Geffken saying it is a project worth taking a...
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Fort Smith home sales market falls in September, but positive trends continue
On the heels of a down month in building activity, the Fort Smith home sales market’s September performance dipped by more than 22% compared to September 2016 with sales volume for the region —...
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Fort Smith draft audit reveals mishandling of funds in criminal...
Fort Smith Internal Auditor Tracey Shockley cited failure to follow appropriate chain of custody practices; failure to maintain adequate documentation for cash expenditures; comingling of funds...
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Fort Smith Junior High robotics team brings ‘Spirit’ to STEM fields
A Spirit squad isn’t the first thing one thinks of when hearing the word “Robotics,” but for Amy Markham, the Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) teacher at Chaffin Junior High in Fort Smith, it was...
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Bank, private sector donations help fund skate park in downtown Fort Smith
First National Bank of Fort Smith announced a $100,000 donation in support of a combination bike and skate park in downtown Fort Smith on Friday (Oct. 13). The park will be located at 121 Riverfront...
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Future Fort Smith talks 78-acre annexation, lip dub world record attempt
Annexation and “lip dubs” were front-and-center at the Future Fort Smith committee meeting on Monday (Oct. 17) from the Creekmore Park Community Center. In news likely to have a significant tax benefit...
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64.6 Downtown announces new Gateway Park for downtown Fort Smith
Plans for the coming Gateway Park were announced at Tuesday’s (Oct. 17) meeting of the Fort Smith Central Business Improvement District (CBID). The park will join 1300 Garrison Ave. and Harwood Park by...
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U.S. Rep. Womack: Marshals Museum fundraising ‘should not be just Fort Smith’
The United States Marshals Museum (USMM) has begun to move dirt on its new site at the intersection of H Street and Riverfront Parkway. In a ceremony on Tuesday (Oct. 17), U.S. Rep. Steve Womack,...
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Fort Smith Board approves annex, Parrot Island contract, and ups liability...
The Fort Smith Board of Directors has approved a 78.61-acre annexation, extended liability payouts to $10,000, and approved a five-year extension to the operating agreement for Parrot Island Waterpark...
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Fort Smith official: Meter replacements will cost $7 million over a phase-in...
Fort Smith Utilities Director Jerry Walters expects the city’s water meter replacement program to be phased in over a two-year period at a cost of $7 million. To date, Walters said, the city has...
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