Stories by Ron Wood
RSSMcDaniel Issues Opinion
REGIONAL MOBILITY MEMBERS AIM TO CLARIFY LIMITATIONS
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — Regional mobility authorities cannot refer sales taxes to voters but their member counties and cities may, according to an Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel’s opinion requested by local transportation planners. Continue reading...
Drive-By Shooting Reported
SPRINGDALE — Police are investigating a drive-by shooting reported on Braxton Drive on Friday night.
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Wings Popular Game Choice
SUPER BOWL FANS TO EAT 1.25 BILLION
The most dominating performance of today’s Super Bowl Sunday may be waiting in the wings, the chicken wings that is. Continue reading...
Tyson Profit Down, Beats Expectations
CEO Tells Shareholders Beef Continues To Be Challenge
SPRINGDALE — Tyson Foods earnings were down about 48 percent for the first quarter, but still beat Wall Street’s expectation. The meat and poultry producer reported Friday net income of $156 million, or 42 cents per share, for the first quarter of fiscal 2012.
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Tax Plan Drives Forward
TRANSIT BOARD BOOTS MOVE TO WITHDRAW BALLOT INITIATIVE
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — Ozark Regional Transit won’t put the brakes on a proposal to put a one-quarter cent sales tax to a vote in Washington County. Continue reading...
Planners Seek Regional Approach
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — Regional Mobility Authority members expressed their desire and intent to tackle transportation needs, funding and priorities from a regional perspective. That includes public transit. Continue reading...
Malone: Transportation options include, reductions, taxes and tolls
Regional Mobility Authority members expressed their desire and intent Tuesday to tackle highway and transportation needs, funding and priorities from a regional perspective. That includes public transit. Continue reading...
Analyst: Tyson Poised For Success
HIGHER DEMAND FOR CHICKEN, PORK PRODUCTS SHOULD PUSH COMPANY’S STOCK UP
SPRINGDALE — Analysts aren’t sure if Tyson Foods will meet expected earnings for the quarter but said lower feed costs, smaller supply and higher demand for chicken and pork products should push the stock higher in the long term. Continue reading...
Engineers Recommend Replacing Airport’s Runway
Repair to the main runway at Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport will require tearing out and replacing the concrete, the drainage system and at least some of the base at an estimated cost of $30 million to $40 million.
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Hunt Continues Roll With Record Quarter, Year
J.B. Hunt Transport Services announced Thursday a 25 percent profit increase for 2011’s fourth quarter. Continue reading...
Economists Optimistic Turnaround Coming
ROGERS — A panel of economists said Wednesday they’re cautiously optimistic the economy will improve this year. Continue reading...
Analysts Disagree On J.B. Hunt
TRANSPORTATION COMPANY SET TO RELEASE YEAR-END FINANCIALS
J.B. Hunt Transport Services has been on a roll but analysts differ on whether the recovering economy will create enough loads for the carrier to maintain its momentum this year. Continue reading...
Tax Would Send Millions To NWA, State Says
Highway Director Outlines Road Projects
Northwest Arkansas can expect to see more than $400 million in highway construction and $60 million in turnback money for local road projects if voters approve a half-cent sales tax in November.
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Transit Advocates Planning Campaign For Transit Money
Advocates for Ozark Regional Transit on Thursday got down to the business of raising money to support a campaign to pass a quarter-cent sales tax in Washington County for public transit.
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Used Car Sales Promising
INCREASED INVENTORY, LOWER DEMAND COULD DROP PRICES
The used car market is showing some signs of stabilizing after a couple volatile years of high demand, tight supplies and resulting high prices. Continue reading...
Tax Idea Causes Rift
PLANNERS WANT TO TAKE UNIFIED APPROACH
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — Planners want to take a unified approach to solving transportation issues in Northwest Arkansas and don’t want a public transit money proposal gumming up the works. Continue reading...
USDA Office Set For Closure
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — A U.S. Department of Agriculture office in Benton County is among 259 offices, labs and other facilities across the country slated for closure. Continue reading...
Benton County USDA Office on the Chopping Block
A U.S. Department of Agriculture office in Benton County is among 259 offices, labs and other facilities across the country slated for closure under a new cost-cutting proposal announced this week.
All programs administered by the Benton County Office, and the employees who work there, would be transferred to the Washington County office in Fayetteville, according to Ted Collins, executive director of the USDA Benton County Farm Service Agency. Continue reading...
Region Sees Seasonal Jump In Jobs
ECONOMIST SAYS EXPECT ROLLER COASTER RECOVERY
FAYETTEVILLE — The Northwest Arkansas metro region got a seasonal employment bump in November but still lags pre-recession job numbers.
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Northwest Arkansas Sees Uptick In Seasonal Jobs
SPRINGDALE — The Northwest Arkansas metro region got a seasonal employment bump in November but still has a long way to go to get back to pre-recession job numbers. Continue reading...
New Car Sales Turning Around
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS AUTO DEALERSHIP SELLS 78 MORE VEHICLES THIS YEAR
Automobile dealers in Northwest Arkansas say they’re selling more cars amid improving economic news.
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Methods Save Ozarks Taste
LOCAL COMPANIES SHIP NATIONWIDE
Since the 1930s and ’40s companies in Northwest Arkansas have used traditional methods to preserve foods, allowing them to send a taste of the Ozarks to customers around the country to enjoy for the holidays. Continue reading...
Working Holidays Part Of Season
The holiday rush means different things to different people. Many are rushing to finish holiday shopping, decorating and cooking. But for caterers, chimney sweeps, wood haulers and Christmas light hangers ’tis the season to work long hours and make some cash.
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Progress Seen On Access Road
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — An access road to Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport is a step closer after state highway officials said they have no more comments on the environmental impact study.
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Program Targets Trucker Shortage
COMPANIES SEEK TO PRODUCE DRIVERS
DELHI, India — At least two local trucking companies are working with the Arkansas Trucking Association and the state to produce new drivers at a time when there’s a nationwide shortage of experienced and qualified drivers. Continue reading...
October Sees More Employed; Recovery Still Slow
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — Unemployment in the Northwest Arkansas metro region dipped slightly from September to October, but remained flat year-to-year, according to the latest figures from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. Continue reading...
Regional unemployment remains flat
Unemployment in the Northwest Arkansas metro region dropped slightly from September to October but remained flat year-to-year, according to the latest data from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. Continue reading...
Air Travel Picking Up This Holiday Season
FLIGHTS, HOTELS COST PREMIUM RATES, AGENCY OWNER SAYS
Northwest Arkansas residents are starting to spend money to travel for the holidays but don’t expect the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport to be any busier than usual. Just think more babies and fewer briefcases. Continue reading...
Interstate Improvements Only Part Of Road Plans
Voters overwhelmingly approved a bond program in November to repair the state’s interstate highway system, but that’s only the first step toward solving Northwest Arkansas’ traffic problems.
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Deer Season Boosts Economy
ANNUAL IMPACT OF HUNTING ESTIMATED AT MORE THAN $789 MILLION
Thousands of hunters will hit the deer woods Saturday for Arkansas’ annual modern gun season. Continue reading...
Voters Support Road Bonds
MONEY TO REPAIR HIGHWAYS, BRIDGES
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — Voters in Benton and Washington counties joined voters statewide Tuesday in overwhelmingly approving a bond program to repair interstate highways. Continue reading...
Region Struggles To Add Jobs
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE SLIGHTLY LOWER
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — Northwest Arkansas is still struggling to recover jobs lost during the recession even though the unemployment rate for the metro area was slightly lower in September than August. Continue reading...
Region Still Trying to Add Jobs
Northwest Arkansas is still struggling to recover jobs lost during the recession even though the unemployment rate for the metro area was slightly lower in September than in August. Continue reading...
‘HIRING OUR HEROES’: Job Fair Aims To Help Veterans
TROOPS STARTING OVER AFTER RETURNING HOME
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — Finding employment for veterans, National Guardsmen and Reservists was a big part of Monday’s job fair in Rogers.
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Voters To Decide Program To Speed Road Work
Farmington resident Amy Smith idles in congested traffic at the Interstate 540 interchange at Martin Luther King Boulevard twice a day between her home and north Fayetteville workplace.
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Berry Business Grows Inside
VIRUS-FREE PLANTS CLONED
PRAIRIE GROVE — Gardeners have stuck cuttings in dirt to grow new plants for centuries. It worked but was slow. Now, the magic happens in a lab where thousands of plants can be tailormade in a fraction of the time. Continue reading...
Black Walnuts Big Business In Ozarks
PROCESSOR SAYS IT’S ‘CASH LAYING ON THE GROUND’
Whether it’s picking up a little extra cash for Christmas, dropping a few kernels in the Halloween fudge or buying millions of pounds for commercial processing, October is harvest time for black walnuts in the Ozarks. Continue reading...
Proposal Nets Concerns
STATE SUGGESTS OPTIONS CONNECTING SPRINGDALE, ROGERS
ROGERS — Donya Wells is worried an extension of Arkansas 265 on the east side of Rogers could run through the middle of her five acres on Primrose Road, east of Lowell.
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Highway Plans Worry Some
EXPANSION COULD FORCE A MOVE
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — David and Anita Baker are looking for some blind, Ozark cavefish. David Baker joked Tuesdayhaving a threatened or endangered species on their property could be one way to save the home the couple recently built on land east of Lowell, where they’ve lived for the past 20 years. Continue reading...
Hearings Set On Arkansas Highway 265 Improvements
STATE OFFICIALS SET PUBLIC INPUT SESSIONS
SPRINGDALE — Highway officials have long wanted to extend Arkansas 265 from the north side of Springdale to Rogers to provide the region with a four- or fi velane eastern corridor. Continue reading...
State Chamber: Education Key To Competition
LOWER TAXES ALSO A FACTOR IN ‘LEVELING PLAYING FIELD’
SPRINGDALE — Arkansas needs a more favorable business climate and better education to compete against neighboring states and in the new global economy, state Chamber of Commerce officials said Tuesday. Continue reading...
Billboards Go High-Tech
NEW PROMOTIONAL SIGNS FAR CRY FROM ‘BARBASOL’ ADS
The days of roadside barns hand painted with advertisements for “Barbasol” and “See Rock City” are long gone. Continue reading...
PEOPLE & PLACES
Williams Marks 98th Birthday Continue reading...
Airport Officials To Look At Industrial Park
CONCEPTUAL STUDY PART OF LARGER EFFORT TO BETTER USE FACILITY AS ECONOMIC DRIVER FOR REGION
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport officials will take the lead on a conceptual study of a potential 2,000-acre industrial and technical park adjacent to the airport. Continue reading...
Report Identifies Region’s Needs
FINDINGS EMPHASIZE EDUCATION
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — Northwest Arkansas has fared better over the past decade than comparable metropolitan areas but needs to invest in research and education to remain competitive and maintain its overall quality of life. Continue reading...
House Repairs On Rise
WEATHER AFFECTS FOUNDATIONS
The first subtle sign was a telltale crack in the wall above a doorway. Continue reading...
Analyst: Region Needs To Invest In Future Now
Economic times will continue to be tough for the foreseeable future but Northwest Arkansas can’t afford to stop investing in infrastructure and education, according to Kathy Deck, director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Arkansas.
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Must invest despite pain, economist says
Schools, infrastructure pay off, Deck says
Economic times will continue to be tough for the foreseeable future, but Northwest Arkansas can’t afford to stop investing in infrastructure and education, according to Kathy Deck, director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Arkansas. Continue reading...
Residents Expect Widening Arkansas 264 To Change Rural Feel
SPRINGDALE — Onetta Clark understands progress but she also hates to see the nature of the property where she has lived for 43 years change.
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Recession Survivors Optimistic, Poised for Success
ROGERS — Businesses that survived the recession did so because they got lean and mean. Now, those survivors are poised to take advantage of a post-recession world with less competition.
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