Berryville gets $1.5M for industrial park
The city of Berryville is getting a $1.5 million federal grant to help develop a 160-acre industrial park, the U.S. Department of Commerce said in a news release Friday. The funds from the department's Economic Development Administration will pay for the project's infrastructure, including street and drainage improvements and wastewater extensions.
With an additional $401,100 in local funds, the project is expected to create or retain more than 400 jobs and spur more than $330 million in private investment, the news release said.
The industrial park will be located in a designated Opportunity Zone created by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. Opportunity zones are intended to spur economic development by giving tax incentives to investors in economically distressed communities.
Regional planning efforts by the Northwest Arkansas Economic Development District made the project possible, according to the release. The Economic Development Administration funds the development district "to bring together the public and private sectors to create an economic development roadmap to strengthen the regional economy, support private capital investment and create jobs."
-- Serenah McKay
Tech salaries rise fastest in Texas city
Tech salaries in Austin, Texas, grew faster than other major U.S. cities, rising 15% in a three-year period according to recent report from job recruiting company Hired. The average salary rose to $125,000 in 2018 from $118,000 the year prior.
San Francisco-based Hired matches tech workers like software engineers and data scientists with job opportunities. The company reviewed more than 400,000 interview requests and offers between companies and job seekers for the study.
"We've seen a lot of tech companies relocate down to Austin or open development centers in Austin," said Hired Chief Executive Officer Mehul Patel. "We've seen a lot of talent want to go to Austin because the quality of life, cost of living is low. Those things come together to make Austin a robust tech ecosystem and that's represented by increasing salaries."
San Francisco tech workers continue to lead the way with an average salary of $145,000. But, once the cost of living is taken into account, Austin workers are better off, according to the report.
-- Bloomberg News
Index of state stocks tumbles 1.98 points
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, closed Friday at 407.75, down 1.98 points.
Simmons First National shares rose 1.6 percent. Shares of USA Truck fell 5.9 percent.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.
Business on 06/22/2019