BETWEEN THE LINES With Growth Comes Planning

The new U.S. Census numbers should slap folks in the face around here.

Whatever else has happened statewide (some of it downright distressing), Northwest Arkansas has seen phenomenal growth - and should expect and plan for more.

The combined population of Benton and Washington counties is now more than 424,400, a gain of well over 100,000 people in just 10 years’ time.

That’s reason enough for reconsideration of just how ready the region is for the next decade and the ones after that.

Growth has long been a part of the Northwest Arkansas dynamic. We’re always having to play catch up in one way or another; but the amount of growth in this last decade suggests the need for even more aggressive planning.

Perhaps the best example of the need is the absence of even modest county zoning laws in fast-growing Benton County. The planning board there will soon revisit land-use planning, but apparently not zoning.

Washington County has a modest zoning law but may need to get more aggressive to match what is happening.

Let these facts sink in:

The two-county population now surpasses Pulaski County’s.

With 382,748 people, Pulaski County remains the state’s largest single county. It is an urban county by Arkansas standards, with Little Rock and North Little Rock together accounting for more than 250,000 of thecountywide population.

But these two counties in Northwest Arkansas are decidedly urban as well and grew at much greater percentages than Pulaski County over the past decade.

In Benton County, growth is spread all over the place. Half a dozen cities collectively report just shy of 150,000 population now. Rogers, with almost 55,964, is the county’s largest, followed by Bentonville with 35,301.

There are fewer people in Washington County but the density is greater. The combined populations of three cities - Fayetteville and adjoining Springdale and Farmington - similarly fall just below the 150,000 mark. Fayetteville remains the region’s largest city with 73,580 and Springdale isnow second largest with 69,797.

There’s no reason not to expect such growth to continue, further concentrating large numbers of people in and around the cities of Northwest Arkansas.

Like it or not, with all those extra bodies comes the need for greater regulation - including zoning.

It might not happen just yet, but there’s another bit of change on the horizon for both Benton and Washington counties that should bring more urban influences to bear on such issues.

After quorum court districts are redistricted for the 2012 elections, each of these counties will have 15-member quorum courts. Each district must have roughly equal constituencies, and more of the court members will necessarily come from places where all these people are concentrated.

A lot depends on how the new districts are finally drawn. Some may be rural-urban mixes, others all urban and maybe even one or two strictly rural districts.

But the redistricting must result in roughly equal populations in each of the districts, which means urban voters will elect many of the future court members.

Ideally, beginning in 2013, a Benton County Quorum Court member will represent 14,756 people. The magic number in Washington County will be 13,538.

With so many of the people in both counties concentrated in cities, anyway the redistricting pie gets sliced, more of the members in each court - maybe 10 or more out of 15 - will be elected to represent city dwellers.

By then, the quorum courts (or the urban folks they’ll represent) may be more keenly interested in matters like land-use regulation and zoning.

BRENDA BLAGG IS A COLUMNIST FOR NORTHWEST ARKANSAS MEDIA.