EP. 69: Mayor Orman on Bentonville’s Smart Growth

Mayor Stephanie Orman pulls back the curtain on Bentonville's remarkable growth strategy in this candid conversation about the city's future. Drawing from her seven years as mayor and previous terms on city council, Orman reveals how her journey from neighborhood POA involvement to city leadership shaped her collaborative approach to governance.

"We want to grow well," Orman emphasizes repeatedly, detailing how Bentonville balances explosive development with thoughtful planning. With two out of every three new Northwest Arkansas residents choosing Benton County, the pressure to maintain quality of life while accommodating growth is immense. Safety remains the top priority, followed by connectivity and strategic infrastructure development that anticipates future needs rather than merely reacting to them.

What sets Bentonville apart is its uniquely collaborative approach with developers. The city's ownership of water, sewer, and electrical utilities allows for streamlined planning that few municipalities can match. Early conversations with city planners can save developers significant time and resources while ensuring projects align with community needs. Orman's vision includes distributed "city centers" throughout Bentonville, creating multiple nodes of activity that reduce traffic while providing equitable amenities to all residents.

The Walmart campus redevelopment exemplifies this approach, with the Razorback Greenway running through what might traditionally have been a closed corporate environment. This integration of public space with private development characterizes Bentonville's philosophy. As Orman proudly states, "Our downtown is the best trailhead in America," highlighting how outdoor recreation has become fundamental to the city's identity.

For investors considering Bentonville, Orman offers pragmatic advice: engage with the city early, understand infrastructure capabilities, and recognize that all areas of the city are being developed with connectivity and quality of life in mind. Subscribe now to hear more insider perspectives on Northwest Arkansas' most dynamic real estate market.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:07):
Welcome to Northwest Arkansas Investing Podcast, your
go-to source for real estateinvesting in Northwest Arkansas.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
With your seasoned investor just starting out.
We bring you expert insights,market trends and practical
strategies to help you buildwealth through real estate.

Speaker 3 (00:20):
From buying and selling to property management
and long-term investmentplanning, we cover it all so you
can make smart, informeddecisions in this fast-growing
market.
Let's dive in.
Welcome back to NorthwestArkansas Investing Podcast.
I've got co-host Brian Wagershere and we've got our guest, ms
Mayor Stephanie Orman, so weappreciate your time.

Speaker 4 (00:40):
Thanks for having me.

Speaker 3 (00:41):
Yeah, thanks for coming on and we're super
grateful that you took time outof your schedule.
We know it's super busy and sowe're just grateful to kind of
get your perspective, let ourlisteners get to know you a
little bit more and kind ofwhat's going on with Biddenville
and kind of plans we havemoving forward.
So for those that don't knowyou and kind of your background,
give us kind of a high 30,000foot view of you, how you got

(01:06):
into public service and whatthat's looked like.

Speaker 4 (01:10):
Well, I'm in my seventh year as mayor of
Bentonville, but before that Iserved two terms on the city
council, but before that I wasadvertising marketing, so I've
had a full-time job.
And then did city council um,but really got involved with the
city um, honestly, by gettingengaged with my neighborhood poa
and then having theconversations at the city level

(01:31):
of how pretty much everythingthey do at the local level that
affects us on a daily basis theresidents, and so some of the
initial conversations were aboutstreet lights and who maintains
those right, and that's how Istarted to learn our departments
and just really interested inhow I could connect residents to
city services and make that youknow, communication happen.
And so eventually I ran forcity council and I lost my first

(01:55):
race as city council but um,against a good, existing uh or
person in office and, and youknow, learned a lot through that
process and decided to rentagain and won two terms on city
council and then ran for mayorand then I just re-ran for mayor
for my second term as mayor.

Speaker 3 (02:13):
That's amazing.
So, born and raised inNorthwest Arkansas, I'm not born
and raised.

Speaker 4 (02:17):
But I say it's home because I've had both of my kids
here and I have a daughter whojust this past year I graduated
from bhs and she'll be at u of aand then I've got a sophomore,
uh, going into bhs.
So my kids were born here.
So I consider myself just if mykids were born here like this
is home, that's right,absolutely so.

Speaker 3 (02:36):
uh, so it sounds like from even from a small level of
being you know being a part ofpoa and kind of what seeing
what's happening on on theinside of you know getting
approvals, or getting you knowbeing a part of POA and kind of
what seeing what's happening onon the inside of you know
getting approvals, or gettingyou know understanding how
things work there Is that whatkind of sprung you into like
yeah, I think I can help do thisbetter.
Is that kind of what thethought was originally?

Speaker 4 (02:56):
Yeah, and really, um, that communication, that
connection piece of it, um, oneof the things I started in my
first term was what we call3-1-1.
So it's about 22 of the mainconcerns that we hear in the
city, everything fromstreetlights that's usually our
number one, you know we've gotabout 20, I think we're up to
around over 4,000 streetlightsin the city.

(03:19):
So I think people don't realizelike all of those have to be
maintained and that's just oneof about I don't know how many
thousand different things thatwe handle, to potholes, to
whatever it might be.
So, um, you know, that's that's.
That's where my passion lies isreally trying to connect
residents with all the cityservices and then also telling
the city story.
Um, I do think at the locallevel level, where our teams are

(03:43):
those on the ground.
So, so, when something happens,if we have a natural disaster,
tornadoes, whatever it might beour teams are going to be the
ones on the ground making thingsreally happen.
And so I'm very passionateabout the city and our employees
and what they do, and I justknow that they really care about
our residents and I think wehave a really high quality of

(04:06):
life in the city of Bentonvilleand we work really hard to try
to maintain that.

Speaker 3 (04:09):
That's crazy.
Yeah, agreed, and my wife and Ilive in Bentonville now, so
we're big fans, obviously, andso for you did everything start
for you in Bentonville, and wheny'all moved to northwest
Arkansas, whenever that was, didy'all live in Bentonville
originally and kind of havestayed there.

Speaker 4 (04:27):
Good, I'm in the same house that we bought over 20
years ago now Sage Neighborhood.

Speaker 2 (04:34):
Still on the POA, I know.

Speaker 4 (04:35):
No, not still on.
The POA, but I do interact a lotwith and actually I started a
program called GreatNeighborhoods and it's really
designed for POA members to meetmonthly and they get connected
to all of our different cityservices and whatever that you
know the hot topics that aregoing on, really trying to make
sure that they feel they have apersonal touch with the city and

(04:57):
can.
And you know, at the end of theday we're trying to get
neighbors next to neighbors andto love your neighbor and to
live next door to them, and sosometimes you got to work
through a lot of issues too andso, yeah, but that program is
something I'm really proud ofthat we that we have in the city
.
I think we've got I don't knowover maybe 30 neighborhoods and
then also, if it's just a like astreet or of neighbors that

(05:20):
want to come together, we have away for them to kind of come
together.
So if they want to take actionitems like get a sidewalk built
or whatever it might be, yeah,we can try to help them connect
to be able to get those thingsdone.
I always say like we want tohelp you in any way that we can,
but sometimes it just takesneighbors getting together and
working together to get some ofthe things done that we can't

(05:43):
immediately accomplish.

Speaker 3 (05:44):
Totally, that makes sense.

Speaker 2 (05:46):
Such a collaborative approach.
Like Northwest Arkansas hasthis unique aspect of it.
You know, in Bentonville andother sub-marines it's very
collaborative and you can tellthat there.

Speaker 4 (05:56):
Absolutely.
I think that's definitely someof the secret sauce for the area
is just there's a lot ofcollaboration.

Speaker 2 (06:02):
Yeah, absolutely.
You guys talked about how thestandard of living but like it's
great, like in northwestArkansas, bentonville
specifically.
You know, if you look atnationally, nwa is still an
affordable place to livecompared to.
You know everyone's getting hitwith inflation, everyone's
getting hit with higher costs.
But you know there are somepeople in northwest Arkansas
that say, hey, it's getting,this is getting not as

(06:25):
affordable as it was.
How do you balance that withtrying to provide these
amenities and having such a niceplace to live?

Speaker 4 (06:33):
You know, again, there's a lot of collaboration
in Bentonville, northwestArkansas.
One of the things we try to, wehave a quality of life
initiative around our parks andconnectivity, but we do also
have private partners to help uswith that.
So for trying to to put a parkin um, you know, the first thing
is getting the land right.
So a lot of times we havepartners that want to see

(06:55):
quality of life continue to behigh and so we're able to get
land to be able to put a park onand we may um.
A lot of land that comes to usmay be donated in some form um
and we're protecting thefloodways and so some of them
won't.
You know, a lot of times isn'tbuildable but it's great for a
park space and you can and youcan put the amenities and in the
portion of that that makessense and leave 80 of it

(07:17):
untouched and you have thisgreat gathering place and that's
.
You know, when you talk to um,I think people that talk about
bentonville, that's one of thethings you're going to hear is
your, your park space and andyour gathering places are are
something that reallycontributes to quality of life
yeah, absolutely no, I love that.

Speaker 3 (07:35):
I think, uh, you know something.
An interesting stat that we'vetalked about before is, uh, you
know, biddon county is everyperson that moves to northwest
arkansas or every three people,theiriddon County is every
person that moves to NorthwestArkansas or every three people.
Biddon County is getting two ofevery three people that moved
to Northwest Arkansas, which Ithought was a really interesting
stat.
For Biddonville specifically,obviously, population trends

(07:57):
continue to go up and it'sobviously a place that you know.
When you look at national newseven, I mean, people know
Biddonville and people knowFayetteville and I would say,
just from my experience beingaround, most people really only
know Biddenville and and peoplethat are coming from out of
state are really coming to seeBiddenville and to do the you
know the bike parks in BellaVista and kind of be around that

(08:18):
scene.
Um, for, for Biddenvillespecifically, I mean, what is,
what is you know?
I know you mentioned a lot ofthis when during the last
skyline report that we listenedto, that, I listened to you
speak, but you talk about likelivability and kind of wanting
to get that density to increase.
I guess tell us a little bitabout kind of what, the biggest

(08:39):
initiative.
I know we're kind of divingright in but curious on kind of
what that big initiative is foryou all to kind of have people
living within.

Speaker 4 (08:48):
Well, for us, I think the number one thing we focus
on as a city is going to besafety.
So that's what our residentsthat are moving here, that's
what they want to know.
They want to know that you havea safe city.
But in connection with that,you're thinking about
connectivity.
That's a big initiative for us,and right, connectivity, and
that's a big initiative for us.
And right now, infrastructureis a big initiative for us.

(09:09):
So, as we grow, we know we'regoing to grow.
People want to be here.
We've had large announcementsof different things that over
the last few years have beenbuilt but also that are coming.
So we know.
And then, obviously, with theWalmart headquarters and
everything opening, we knowwe're going to continue to grow.
So there's a real focus for uson infrastructure and growing

(09:30):
well and learning from otherother areas that have high
growth.
You know what are some of thepitfalls there and let's try not
to repeat some of those.
And the the biggest thing thatwe've learned is really
understanding infrastructure and, as development comes in,
making sure that theinfrastructure is coming along
with it, and that can bechallenging, because that

(09:52):
oftentimes does mean you seesome orange barrels out there or
different things, and so people, you know I think that's
sometimes a challenge, but whenyou see those know that we're
trying to help plan along withthe gross um, when we work with
developers, um, they'reoftentimes putting in a lot of
that infrastructure.
I don't think that's somethingthat the public doesn't always

(10:15):
realize is that, um, a lot ofthe infrastructure that comes
along with a project gets getsbuilt by the developer.
Our goal at the city is toreally work in conjunction with
the developers.
So whatever we can do on ourside to put in or match or bring
the infrastructure in with thatdevelopment, we want to also be
able to try to do that.

Speaker 3 (10:34):
Yeah, that's awesome I think Tyler talked quite a bit
about that last week and justkind of the teamwork aspect that
you all seem to take withdevelopers and folks that are
looking to continue to kind ofgrow in the area or bring new
exciting things to the area tomake it really cool and livable,
which I think is.
I think that's a.

(10:55):
You know, the approach thatinvestors that are listening to
this want to hear is, you know,has been to a place that is
business friendly, that wants towork with us to, you know,
bring opportunity here and stufflike that, and it sounds like
that's kind of at the core ofwhat y'all are doing we are and
we see um we're.

Speaker 4 (11:10):
I think we're very fortunate too that developers
that are are in our office.
They, they want to bring, youknow, connectivity, they want to
bring trails through theirdevelopments, they want to find
ways to, to, to do some of thethings the city wants to
accomplish, but also it justjust gives them, it makes them,
they have a better product, andso I think that's really what
we're trying to do is make thoseconnections and work together.

(11:31):
It's awesome.

Speaker 2 (11:32):
To check Mark on the safe, like Bentonville is super
safe.
I feel super safe going outthere.
I mean all of NorthwestArkansas, but you guys are doing
an incredible job there.
With the continued populationgrowth, so that's definitely a
check on the box.
I think you guys have done areally good job of understanding
.
Density helps cost, like moreproduct online is going to make

(11:55):
owners, developers, have to becompetitive if they want to be
competitive to the nextdevelopment going on.

Speaker 4 (12:00):
Yeah, and we've really tried to.
We just passed a new land useplan, but that's been a very
intentional process to reallyunderstand what type of
developments that we want to see, but also that we're seeing in
work and understanding what theywant to bring to the area, and
trying to capture that in yourland use and we're using that to
build out our utilities.

(12:21):
Using that to build out ourutilities, we're trying to be as
proactive as you possibly canwith that, and so we're in the
middle of it.
It's quite the experience.
But what I think you'll findwhen we lay everything out is
that we're trying to really workwith developers and give them

(12:43):
pathways forward so that thecity can grow and we can grow
well, and one of the things isbuilding out your utilities for
that development and trying todo it in conjunction.
Yeah, absolutely.
And I think sometimes the publicdoesn't realize also how much
of your infrastructure isunderground.

(13:03):
You don't see it right.
So more than 75 percent of ourinfrastructure is pipes in the
ground or underground wire orwhatever it might be.
So as you're developing, youknow that all has to go
somewhere.
So if you're moving it, allthese things that um are the big
conversations of how do you getthe development ground but how
do you also get all of thoseutilities and infrastructure

(13:26):
along.
It's a big conversation, but Ithink you know, with, with the
help of development, thedevelopment community and um,
our team working together, we'rewe're finding, we're finding
solutions.

Speaker 3 (13:37):
Yeah, absolutely.
I think that's a huge partCause you see, uh, you start to
see in the headlines, you knowother areas in Northwest
Arkansas that are really, youknow, being reactive and not
proactive on those things andhow that's kind of going to, you
know, cause a potential harm totheir city specifically, and so
I think that's a great approachand kind of really what we have

(13:59):
to do, right, yeah.
So, yeah, I think I think onething that you mentioned on kind
of you know, I love kind ofyour leadership philosophy and
you know what you talk aboutwith holistic growth and the
livability aspect and youmentioned that a little bit too
with kind of that communityinput with you know, if
neighbors can gather together ona on a shared cause, how they

(14:22):
can, you know, get things donein Bentonville.
How does that look with,especially the big developments
like the Walmart campus and thenew Gateway Park and some of
these other big things?
What does community input looklike on some of the bigger
things?
I guess?

Speaker 4 (14:41):
So the Walmart campus was the private campus, but I
will say I gotta give, I reallyhave to give a shout out to
walmart because, um, you knowthat the greenway runs right
through their campus.
Yeah, that you know.
I don't think that might havebeen the original thought
process because if you look at,you know corporate campuses
across us, they're very closedoff, they're very, but we were

(15:01):
able to work with them and it'sgoing to be beautiful and the
public gets to experience it.
Um, I think it's probablysetting the standard for having
a more open campus that allowsthe public to um, enjoy that I
did.
We have been telling the publicto like bear with us because we
kind of had to break up thegreenway and put and now we're
putting it back together toaccomplish that.
So there's been some growingpains with that.

(15:24):
Um sure we just uh, we just dida groundbreaking on what we call
the p street um trail andthat'll kind of be a that last
connector piece there.
Um, there's a tunnel that'sgoing to go under 14th um and
then right onto the campus andso you know where you used to if
you're on a bike, have to crossseveral 14th something, major

(15:45):
arterial roads.
Yeah, we're able to put intunnels and trails and different
things to just have a muchsafer.

Speaker 3 (15:50):
That's amazing pathway, so it'll roll under
14th street from walmart campus.

Speaker 4 (15:55):
Yeah, gotcha yeah, and then um, it connects there
with the razorback, kind of onthe back side of bhs high school
okay, that's awesome, that'swhere, that's where we live, so
we love that uh.

Speaker 3 (16:06):
So for you, so for you I know we've got you know
there's a lot of uh developmenthappening in in Bentonville
specifically.
What are some things thatyou're really excited about that
uh either are happening now ormaybe you're are uh and I know
there's a lot of things that youcan't talk about, that are that
are happening in the background.
But what are some developmentsthat y'all are really excited
about that they're kind of atthe forefront wow, like I said,

(16:27):
obviously the the walmartheadquarters and um that you
know.

Speaker 4 (16:32):
I talked about the greenway running through it, but
also they have their, they haveretail on the campus, right,
they want the campus to beactive, so, um, but the major um
road that runs through there is8th street and that's been
about a a.
I always tell people like it'sabout a 20-year project, but we
got it done in the last fewyears.
You actually saw theconstruction.
There's been a lot of work by alot of people to get to even,

(16:55):
you know, putting this up on theground.
So I want to say thank you toall those before.
But we did finish the project.
But we did it, you know, inconjunction with um, some
private partners on that pieceof it, and I think that's how we
get things done, but yeah butthat's an example of a project
that was started many years ago.
That's, that's getting done.
Um, we have had some excitingnews about about health care,

(17:18):
obviously, the medical school.
We've got students on theground, I think, um, and so
there's a lot more announcementsaround health care.
I think you know the goal isfor us to be a health care
destination and so we're reallyexcited about that.
Also, the announcement of whatwill go on the current, the old

(17:39):
Walmart campus.
They're still transitioningpeople over, so a college and so
exciting news there.
So you know we're a town wethink roughly, if we go by our
GIS, our address is around62,000.
So when you think about thetype of amenities that a city

(18:01):
that size that we have, aboutthe type of amenities that a
city that size that we have,it's pretty phenomenal to think
what's here, what's been builtjust in the last few years and
what's coming, yeah, it'sworld-class.

Speaker 2 (18:13):
It's not even just nationally, it's world-class.
You mentioned private partnersthat are investing back into the
city.
Have you seen in your sevenyears that there's a lot of
local players in NorthwestArkansas?
There's a lot of local businessowners that also invest in real
estate?
Have you seen an increase inout-of-state interest in your

(18:34):
past seven years or are youseeing that the same amount of
local?
Obviously, the Waltons have ahuge presence in Bentonville but
same what we were talking aboutearlier.
They have a collaborativeapproach, they want other
developers, they don't want tobe the only developer in the
room.
But have you seen an increasein national or even
international interest inBentonville?

Speaker 4 (18:55):
Absolutely so.
We have, you know, developersfrom all over that are engaging
with us.
You know, I think we talkedabout healthcare, so we're
getting people, you know, allover from that.
And then obviously, supplychain logistics, with Walmart
being here, I mean that's kindof a staple but also industry,
outdoor recreation.

(19:16):
We're, you know, we're becoming.
It used to be we're the home ofWalmart, now it's we're the
home of Crystal Bridges.
You know we say our downtown isthe best trailhead in america.
So from an outdoor recreationstandpoint, also from, um, I
think, an aviation standpointtoo.
So several categories therethat I think are just they're

(19:38):
hot categories.
People want to be a part of itand they want to be in an
environment that fosters that,and I think that's what you find
in Bentonville yeah, it'samazing.

Speaker 3 (19:47):
I uh, I was just looking back, uh, through
Twitter recently and saw a videothat Sarah Huckabee Sanders put
out there.
That uh was.
You know, I think there musthave been some kind of event I
wouldn't know the name of it,you would but basically where,
um, you know, folks will come into Bentonville and show off new
tech and stuff like that.
It was just a video about.

(20:08):
You know, she mentioned this isnot Austin, texas, this is
Biddenville, arkansas, orwhatever, um, which I thought
was really cool because I think,like you said, I mean for our
size, to have, you know, theinfrastructure and things that
we have, the companies, the, youknow, the businesses that want
to be here, the culture, even,uh, I think it's it's really
hard to find and, uh, I thinkthere's something really cool

(20:30):
growing.
So, uh, one thing that that, uh, I think we we've talked about
and uh, already, but would loveto know a little bit more.
I think the cycling and the,the walking, obviously, the
Razorback Greenway and kind ofeverything that goes within that
it seems like it's, you know,something that is, you know,
becoming part of Biddevilleculture and really something

(20:53):
that you guys are leaning into.
Is that fair to say?

Speaker 4 (20:57):
Absolutely, and you're seeing everything from.
You know, obviously, bike shops, but bike manufacturers now and
the conversation of how canthey set up shop here, right.
So I think it's exciting,you'll see that and I think, um,
we're a really good area.
I think too, for, uh, from alogistic standpoint, for for
things like light manufacturingand different things, and I
think a lot of our bicyclemanufacturers might fall into

(21:19):
that category, and you're gonnasee some of that, some of that
growth.

Speaker 2 (21:22):
That's awesome yeah, I definitely see.
You know, the medical tylermentioned that too on the last
episode about how the medicalindustry is growing quite a bit.
And I'll, you know, shout outalice walton for her work there
too.
And uh, you know, the stemprogram too is pretty cool
seeing that uh come online.
Do you see?
Uh, bella vista as acollaborator, as a competitor.

(21:45):
Was there growing bike chaintoo?

Speaker 4 (21:47):
I think we're.
You know, we are a region hereand I think that's some of the
successes that there iscollaboration.
So we want to see the citiesaround us be successful as well.
We, you know, we all need to betalking from an infrastructure
standpoint too, because we allneed to be talking from an
infrastructure standpoint too,because, you know, especially
with roads and people don't knowwhen they stop in Bentonville

(22:10):
and enter Bella Vista, and sothose conversations have to be
real and they have to becollaborative, and so it's good
for all of us if we can, when wecan, if we can combine
resources or, you know, justhelp the city out and say you
know, this is what we learnedhere.
So don't maybe, you know, learnfrom each other.

(22:31):
We have two wastewater treatmentplants and we are part of a
regional wastewater treatmentplant, so we do try to, we
believe in collaboration andregional efforts in some of
those areas, regional efforts insome of those areas, and we
want to be part of that.
We think we're leading on someof those conversations and being
engaged with that, and I thinkyou probably need to see more of

(22:52):
that.
And some specific areas whereyou know infrastructure costs
are, you know, those are real aswell with growth right, and so
combining efforts, I think, andcollaboration is something that
we need to see more of.

Speaker 2 (23:07):
Yeah, I love that.
You think that's part of thepath to some of the
infrastructure capacity.
You know it's called capacityissues.
You know where some of it is.
You might have water capacityin a certain area.
You know maybe that's more of aplanning department question,
but you know what's part of thatsolution to meeting that

(23:28):
capacity and making sure itdoesn't last too long.
You know, obviously you'regoing to have certain time
constraints, constraints.
It's not what the publicdoesn't see.
There's a lot that's goingunderground.
So, um, what would you say isthe path?

Speaker 4 (23:39):
well, and I think you know there has been a lot of
collaboration too.
I want to remember that too.
Obviously.
Um, on the water side, beaverwater wholesales out to the four
main cities and then we weprovide to some of the smaller
communities around.
So that's an example.
That was, that has been said,you know, many years ago, by a

(24:00):
lot of forethought um, so so Ithink we have some of those
examples.
From a wastewater treatmentplant standpoint, you know, naca
, it's been both the major flowin that, but it serves several
other cities and I think,because of how I guess costly

(24:21):
those investments are, I dothink that collaboration and
coming together and beingwilling to let everybody grow
and figure out how to do that ina manner that works for
everybody is important, and I dothink it's probably part of the
solution going forward yeah,makes sense.

Speaker 3 (24:44):
So I think this is a part that I think a lot of
investors would love to knowmore on and kind of just got to
get a better idea from.
You know, obviously, yourexperience in what happened or
what you all did with the newland use map and everything like
that.
So I guess for you all and foranybody that doesn't know
Bentonville specifically and howthings have changed, you know

(25:08):
what was at the forefront.
I know high density is animportant thing for you know
kind of the new zoning andthings like that, but I guess
what was at the forefront of andwhat are some of the big
changes that happened with thisnew land use initiative.

Speaker 4 (25:24):
Well, trying to provide for different types of
housing to different sizes ofhousing.
So, and then density we wereseeing a lot and a shift in some
of just design as well, a lotof mixed use which you didn't
maybe see 10 years ago, right,and so trying to accommodate for
that, because obviously it'sgoing to have more, it's going

(25:46):
to be you're going to need morecapacity in your systems, um,
more of that type of developmentthat you see.
And so we really tried tounderstand our assets in our
city where our wastewatertreatment plants were, you know,
where um flow of gravity anddifferent things to to work with
, and so that's um, and workingwith a consultant, um, we also

(26:09):
wanted to, right, we driveeverybody kind of to our
downtown area, which is awesomeand great, but we, with our land
use, also wanted to create somecity centers, so there were
goods and services in some otherareas, not just driving
everybody, and so we're tryingto accomplish that and work with

(26:29):
the developers to help usaccomplish that.
Trying to accomplish that andwork with the developers to help
us accomplish that.
Obviously, you got the downtownand then you go.
You can go down 8th, 8th orMain and get to 8th Street,
which is the connector rightover to the Walmart campus, and
so you know, we feel like that.
That whole area has opportunityfor development and growth.
And, again, so you, you might,you might come to the downtown

(26:53):
and we have a project calledQuilt the Parks that connects
our downtown parks, but we wantyou to be able to experience
those parks, walk down past ournew library expansion, get to
8th Street and then get over to8th Street Market and then to
the Walmart campus and reallyit'd be an experience where it's
not just you're not just comingto downtown, yeah, and so, um,

(27:14):
there's a lot of thought andintentionality with that and, um
, I think you're going to seedevelopers get excited about
that and want to be part of that.
And then, um, also from that,uh, the, the old campus is a
connector point there.
So, hopefully, as you see thatthat campus, that university
campus, develop, you're going tohave, you're going to be able

(27:34):
to come to downtown park andthen, hopefully, you're, you're
walking or maybe riding a bike,just to the experiences in that
area.

Speaker 2 (27:43):
That's amazing city centers are a great idea, you
know.
It's not just a square, youknow, which is obviously amazing
in its own right, but havingthese other.
Did you guys get that fromanother city or did that kind of
just evolve, and how did that?

Speaker 4 (27:55):
we have a consultant that we've been working with
that, you know, does this acrossum the us.
But, um, I will say we, wethink bettenville is uniquely
bettenville, um, so we're nottrying to be any other city, but
I think you can look atconcepts that work in other
areas and then understand whereyour assets are and try to build
around that and put a planaround that, and that's that's

(28:18):
what we've tried to beintentional with that's awesome.

Speaker 3 (28:20):
I think we talked a lot about that with tyler in the
in the last few weeks, um, andjust about the city centers and
and what that looks like, andand uh, just for me it came to
mind.
Like nashville, uh, my, theonly time I've ever been to
nashville, I kind of feel like Iexperienced some of these, what
, what I imagine city centerswould be like.
You know, shopping andrestaurants and people living

(28:43):
around that and can walk to it.
Um, and yeah, I think I thinkthat'd be again another really
creative and cool opportunity,and I think you're seeing some
of that even being talked aboutin Fayetteville now, because
Fayetteville is so developed forit to have some of those, like
you know, maybe restaurantsplanted right in the middle
restaurants and maybe a littlebit of shopping planted in the

(29:04):
middle of neighborhoods wherepeople can walk.
And again, I think I guess itall really ties back to, you
know, infrastructure and traffic, and we want people walking and
biking and, like you know, lesscars off the road, I guess.

Speaker 4 (29:20):
Well, you know, I tell people you know, just with
the Walmart campus, if you'vegot whatever, the number is 12,
13,000 people coming in a day ifthey're all getting in their
cars and coming.
Thousand people coming in um aday if they're all getting in
their cars and coming.
So I really need need someportion of that that live in
that area to maybe think aboutalternative.
Yeah, so I don't have all ofthose cars, so for me it's it's

(29:41):
a little bit of a not only is itan initiative that we're trying
, we want people to be activeand we think that's good just
from a lifestyle standpoint, butalso just from a traffic
standpoint.
I need some of them to maybelook at different alternatives
to make that experience gettinginto the headquarters, you know,
good for everybody.

(30:02):
So, and I think that'ssomething that Walmart has,
initiative around that too.
So it's nice that you have it'salso their initiative and we're
trying to figure out how to toencourage that and and and have
people utilize that.
And, like I said, we you knowwe are a biking community we're
trying to help the public um,love biking, whatever age,

(30:27):
whatever, um, and sort ofembrace that active lifestyle
too.
So it's not just forprofessional bike riders.
Like I'm not out on themountain bike trails because I
like my color bones, I tellpeople True.
But you know, if I can bikedowntown to a meeting or
something like that, it can be alot more convenient than
getting in your car and gettingon the road.

(30:47):
So we want to encourage thatand, you know, I think that's
something that I think ourresidents are embracing more and
more, and we're also trying toput in the safe infrastructure
along with that right, so thatthey do feel safe whenever they
choose to take differentalternative modes of

(31:08):
transportation, that they feelsafe getting out there.

Speaker 3 (31:11):
Yeah, that's amazing.

Speaker 2 (31:12):
I'm more of a trail biker myself as well, I get
scared of the mountain bike.

Speaker 4 (31:18):
I do like the hard surface, I will say, but I do
understand that the mountainbiking trails are very fun.

Speaker 3 (31:25):
Sure.

Speaker 2 (31:25):
It's like a ski resort.
I mean, it's so cool being askier and when I first came here
10 years ago, just seeing thetrails, it feels like a ski
resort.
So you have these.

Speaker 4 (31:35):
These trails is how I describe it to people now I
think that's actually kind oftheir thought process is you
know you want to have, and wethey try to develop trails that
are all different skill sets,right, so you have a green and a
black out there.

Speaker 3 (31:48):
Um, yeah, um, from a child perspective, that's
awesome and I just think aboutjust going back to that.
You know even where we livecomparatively to you know
everything going on, like theway it's set up right now, we
can, you know, go out our frontdoor, we can bike, take the
trail through the walmart campusand be at the meteor and in
five to ten minutes, like that'samazing, I don't have to take a

(32:10):
car over there and like try tofind parking and all that kind
of stuff.
And it just seems like, youknow, when I get out, even when
I get out of my car to go to anappointment or something like
that in Bentonville, like thetrails are full, like there's
people that are.
It's part of the culture.

Speaker 4 (32:25):
So I think it's really cool to see how that's
continuing to evolve continuingto evolve and I I always ask
people so if you, if you do that, if you get on your bike and
ride um, you know, I don't.
I'm guessing that's a mile ortwo, based on what you're not,
not a bowling bike ride, but butoftentimes you feel better,
right, yeah, than if you justgot in your car and didn't do
anything.
So yeah that's, that's what Itell.

(32:45):
People is um, you know, justtry it yeah, absolutely.

Speaker 2 (32:49):
Are there any stats on how healthy I mean I feel
like I walk around people inbentonville pretty healthy.
Is there any like stats?

Speaker 4 (32:54):
I'm like I do think benton county was the healthiest
county in arkansas.
I think there was that theycame out.
Don't quote me on that, but Iwas thinking that I heard that.
But, um, you know, we do haveuh, um, our um, we do think that
we have a pretty active umcommunity that really enjoys the
outdoors.
You know some of the ways thatwe measure, just as just our

(33:17):
trail counts, right, how manypeople are out on the trails, so
we know people are using it.
That's awesome.

Speaker 2 (33:23):
Do you have those numbers Like how many people I
do?

Speaker 4 (33:27):
It's millions over a course of time, so I don't have
the exact stats in front of me,but we do usually put them in
our annual reports, wow that'sawesome.

Speaker 3 (33:37):
I'll have to take a look at that.
I need to put that in theSkyline report as well.
But one thing I wanted to talkon, too, a little bit as far as
planning and land use and stufflike that from a zoning
perspective, something I have inmy notes that have been
encouragements now with the newupdates, like that from a zoning
perspective.
Uh, you know something I havein my notes that you know have
been encouragements now with thenew updates, or you know, adus.

(33:57):
Um, you know, and, and youtalked a little bit about
different types of housing.
So maybe condos, townhomes, youknow, maybe duplexes, different
things like that, um, what whatare?
Uh, you know infill being alsoa something that you're seeing a
lot in in different downtownsacross northwest arkansas, but
uh, any other you know types ofzoning changes as far as that

(34:21):
goes, that you can think of thatso we did our, we did redid our
land use and we've used that to.

Speaker 4 (34:27):
We're now currently in um code updates for that, and
so we are um changing some ofthe the zoning.
We're trying to what we we wantto allow for different types of
housing.
Um, we also really wanted tolearn um to make sure we have
those transitional areas too.
That's usually where we see themost um maybe I don't know if I

(34:53):
want to say controversy, butconflict in that and so we're
trying to make sure that withinZoni, there's good transitions.
In other words, you don't wanta single family with six stories
next to them, right?
And we've had to live and learna little bit on a couple of
areas that we really need tothink through that and make sure
it's the right, it fits in andit makes sense.

(35:15):
And I think that's some of thethings we're trying to do with
this code update, along withallowing people some more
flexibility with size of homeand different things.
It's awesome.

Speaker 3 (35:29):
So I think, transitioning even from there,
you know we we talked a littlebit about affordability and, you
know, obviously, continuing tofind ways to create housing in
an area that's just growing likecrazy and people want to be a
part of.
Uh, what, what are, what havebeen some key partnerships thus
far that you've been able to bea part of that?
Have you know been, you know, apart of the development of new

(35:50):
housing, affordable housing?
Or you know been, you know, apart of the development of new
housing, affordable housing?
Or you know even things thatare coming?
I know we, I know there's beentalks of affordable housing
opportunities, maybe forteachers in benville and and
stuff like that.
So you see, all these things,different things in the news who
have been some key?

Speaker 4 (36:07):
partners.
There's a development coming inand it's um, it's coming in
next to our community centerthat will be teacher, affordable
housing and so I think there'sjust.
I think that you're seeing justpeople coming together trying
to figure out what you know,thinking outside the box a
little bit and trying to figureout how do we, how do we

(36:30):
accomplish some of these things?
Little bit, and trying tofigure out how do we, how do we
accomplish some of these things?
Um, we're trying to be um asfar as from code and zoning,
we're trying to be try tounderstand what the needs are or
developers to make thingspencil and and different things,
and sometimes that's trying tofigure out where there's, you
know, flexibility and in size,can we combine utilities and

(36:54):
different things so that theyhave some more buildable space.
So I think those are theconversations we're trying to
have on our end as we movethrough the zoning code and
really a lot of it, just tryingto make the process of
developing as consistent for thedevelopers as possible.

(37:18):
That's a challenge for us rightnow because of infrastructure,
right, but we're trying to workthrough that.
And one of the things I say inthe city of Bentonville is we do
have all the utilities water,sewer and electrical all under
the city, so we can geteverybody in a room and we can
even invite the third-partyutilities and have them be in
that same room.
And I always say, if ourdevelopers will start there and

(37:41):
really understand where theirutilities need to be located and
then they're kind of designing,then you're not.
You may not get multiple roundsof comments if you kind of
start there.
And so we really want to buildthose relationships so that we
can get people in a room, lookat the project and figure out
how do we accomplish it in themost efficient way.

(38:04):
We also, you know, we stillwant quality products in the
thing of bed and boat right too.
So how do we work together toaccomplish that?

Speaker 2 (38:12):
Yeah, get some to our developer listeners, get some
engineer friends, like a bed andboat right too.
So how do we work together toaccomplish that?
Yeah, it's uh.
Yeah, get some to our developerlisteners, get some engineer
friends they can definitely helpyou with that and talk to the
the planning departments.
I think it's super helpful.
And, and before you get toodeep in a project too, um, I
think, yeah, tyler made a goodpoint of that last episode yeah,
you too.

Speaker 3 (38:30):
From a utility perspective, is that unique to
biddenville?
I've lived in I can't rememberon on I've lived in every all
the big four to this point, andbiddenville is the only one I
remember that has all theirutilities rolled up.
Is that right, or is?

Speaker 4 (38:44):
yeah, and there's only 14.
I think there's 14municipalities that actually
have their own electricdepartment, so there's not a ton
of cities that have their ownelectric department.
So we're definitely unique inin that sense.
Water sewer print.
It depends on the city if it'sactually under the city or if
it's a separate sort ofCommission or board.

Speaker 2 (39:05):
Yeah, absolutely.
I didn't know that 14municipalities have their own
electric that's interesting.

Speaker 3 (39:12):
So I think I want to get a little bit more into.
You know, obviously investorsare looking at Biddenville.
You know we would love to getthem excited about kind of more
of what's going on and kind ofwhat you've seen over your
tenure when it comes to, youknow, revitalization projects
and things that you all havedone even over your last seven
years and what's to come.
What have you seen that you,you all, have done, even over

(39:33):
your last seven years?
Um, and and what's to come,what have you seen that that, uh
, you know what's a successstory?

Speaker 4 (39:38):
I guess that comes to mind when you think about a
revitalization story inbentonville well, um, there's a
couple of different ways, butone of the things we I talked
about earlier was sort of ourparks and recreation initiative.
And so we you see us, we don't.
We have four wards in the cityof Bentonville and so we don't

(39:59):
want any area of the city ofBentonville to be considered not
a area that you want to build,or not the most buildable area,
and so we really try to beintentional about making sure
park space is evenly distributed.
And so those are some of thethings.
And connectivity.
So our goal in the city ofBentonville we have a bike and
ped plan that we've combinedwith our master street plan, but

(40:20):
really we're we're making thisconnector loop from a trail
system around the city and thenwe're we're filling it in with
those East West connections.
So our goal is literally, youcan come to the city of
bettenville and just stay withus for a week and you can just
travel from park to park becauseit and to park and have that

(40:40):
type of experience and it's allconnected.
And so and we're, um, we'rewell on our way to get that
initiative accomplished andbuilt out and we're just trying
to be very intentional with thatand with that we're also able
to work with developers.
So if we know this is where wewant trail connections or things
, and we know development'scoming in and we can say, okay,

(41:02):
you know this is an amenity ifthe trail comes next to your
development right, so let's worktogether on this right.
And so when you have thoseintentional plans, it allows you
to also work better withdevelopers and hopefully it's a
win-win for everybody.

Speaker 3 (41:15):
Yeah, and yeah, it feels like it definitely is.
I've seen even you know we'reworking on a project of it's a
development that's been aroundsince the early 2000s.
But just thinking aboutdifferent amenities and how
that's shaping, kind of wherepeople want to live and
everything.
We've got one in WestBentonville that is right, kind

(41:35):
of where it spits out on Hstreet, uh, and now that expands
all the way to 49, you know,it's kind of a.
It is a big amenity for peoplethat can literally come out of
that neighborhood, turn onto Hstreet and be a gateway park
right there they can getdowntown, really downtown,
really quickly.
Um, and I can see how that is.
You know, could could be reallybeneficial and it has been

(41:56):
really beneficial for us, evenworking on selling through that
neighborhood, um, and it'd bekind of a desirable place to be.
So I figure out duplexcommunity, yep, yep, so, uh, I
love that.
So for for folks that are, youknow, I know there's a lot of
developers that are even lookingspecifically towards I know
there's a lot of developers thatare even looking specifically
towards downtown Bentonville and, uh, and really kind of

(42:17):
building their business aroundthat and and trying to continue
to create, um, you know,innovative housing or, you know,
create kind of new, newopportunities for the area.
What, what would be some, sometips that you would uh, give?
You know commercial investorsthat are looking in Bentonville,
downtown Bentonville,specifically, that you know

(42:38):
they're looking to do somethingyou know.

Speaker 4 (42:40):
Take on an opportunity, you know how can
they be prepared to come to thecity of Bentonville and you know
I always say on the, I wouldstart on the front end if you I
mean, obviously you got towhere's land, right, right, and
so, um, you know that's the thebig first question and and how,
how you acquire that and whatthat cost is.
That starts your affordabilitypiece of that as well.

(43:01):
Right, but, um, come talk to us.
I mean we can throw it up ongis and we can see what
utilities are there and andreally start to talk about and
here's our, here's our trailsystem, here's our proposed
trail system.
Um, so, on the front end, ifyou're you're kind of trying to
figure out what makes sense andand and what type of development

(43:22):
, and we can also, I think wecan have those conversations too
, on the front end of of tryingto help you understand what
might, how we might build thework together.
And again, usually we're, as faras you know, connecting,
connectivity.
That's a something we reallywant people talking to us about,

(43:45):
because it may be that we'vegot an initiative there too,
when we can work together toaccomplish it, which means
usually that maybe there's somefun, you know, funding
opportunities with that if we'retrying to accomplish something
there as well, um, if we need tohave an easement there and you
own it, but we can get a trailin there.
You know that's a conversationwe want to have, right and so,

(44:06):
um, and just tell people, if youcan.
Um, just call our planningdepartment tyler.
They're always welcome, they'realways wanting people to come
talk to them.
So, as much as you can talk tous on the front end before you
go get into designs andeverything else that, let us
have, you know, at least aconversation to really help

(44:26):
understand that and maybe, maybethere's some ways we can make
the project move as quickly aspossible and be as efficient as
possible too, and a high qualityproperty that we want to see in
the city of Bentonville thatmaybe has some wins for
everybody.

Speaker 3 (44:42):
Yeah, that's amazing.
I think you know for investorslistening, you know just like
your banker or your you knowcontractor or those folks are
partners.
I think what you're saying isthe city of bendville, if you're
looking to invest or develop inbendville, are just as much you
want to be your partner thananything else that you got going

(45:02):
on right yeah, and, like I said, we're really trying to con
with the new land use and the umzoning updates.

Speaker 4 (45:09):
we're we're trying to con really commit to
consistency on the developer end, but also for our existing
residents too.
And so you know, hopefully thatworks for everybody, absolutely
.

Speaker 2 (45:22):
Yeah, there's a lot of investors too, outside of the
development world too, thatwill invest in existing property
too.
So maybe not, you know,developing something from land,
but also maybe taking it over anolder building and making a
little bit newer, or justgetting into Bentonville and
riding the appreciation that'sBentonville.
You know Bentonville has grownat an amazing, crazy pace the

(45:44):
past seven years, you know.
Do you, do you picture thatcontinuing at the same growth?
Is that your goal?
To continue at the same growthrate, the seven years?

Speaker 4 (45:55):
I do see us continuing to grow because of
some of the things that havebeen announced around health
care and education and differentthings.
So I can't imagine us notgrowing.
But those type of things thatwe were pretty confident are
definitely gonna be here inthose or so again, we want to
grow.
We say we want to grow.
Well, right, so it's not justabout explosive growth with no

(46:19):
parameters.
It's about strategic,well-planned growth and that's
what we want to see in the cityof Bentonville.

Speaker 3 (46:27):
Yeah, I mean, when you think about Bentonville,
like you mentioned earlier, Imean they're not making any more
land in anywhere in northwestArkansas and so being super
thoughtful with what we've gotleft and how we can really, I
mean continue to to make it aplace where people can, can move
and and uh be a part ofcommunity, I think is is uh

(46:48):
super valuable.

Speaker 4 (46:49):
so you've seen some looking at some unique things
around.
We just had a zoning comethrough where it's a planned
neighborhood, but they leftareas of it ag and to respect
floodplains and the flow ofletting water flow where it
wants to, and then they zonedjust areas within that that were

(47:10):
buildable.
So we're looking at some newways to look at zoning, I think,
to work with developers toreally also get a product we
really want to see yeah, but italso hopefully is helpful to the
developer as well, yeah.

Speaker 3 (47:25):
It's awesome.

Speaker 2 (47:26):
Bentonville is very unique, like you mentioned.
Do you guys ever look atmistakes from others?
Like Austin, texas grew reallyfast but they obviously ran into
some problems.
And you know you have Dallas.
It's still growing but it's aconcrete.
I have friends in Dallas andit's a concrete jungle.
You know there's a lot of coolthings to do.
But yeah, I think do you lookin Denver?
You know it has an outdoorscene which Bentonville is

(47:48):
trying to rival and be that.
Do you look at some of theseother cities and see their
mistakes, or is that somethingthat some of your people around
you are doing too?

Speaker 4 (47:59):
Yeah, absolutely we do.
We've been fortunate to be ableto do site visits and different
things and really haveconversations with city staff in
some areas to say you know whatwere the things you would not.
You know, do again right or tryto avoid.
Also, you know what are thethings that worked really well
again right or try to avoid.
Also, you know what are thethings that worked really well,
and I think that's um, you know,just something we're
continuously trying to do to toum build the city.

(48:21):
That, again, our goal is, youknow, a safe city and a high
quality of life, and so all thethings that play into that are
um, you know, um infrastructureconnectivity, um the different
housing products because peoplewant different things right, and
trying to allow for that.
But also really working withdevelopers so that those

(48:45):
developments incorporate some ofthe things that we also want to
see them incorporate.
And again, hopefully it's a winfor everybody when we really
get around the table and try tothink through that and work
together.
That's amazing.

Speaker 2 (48:57):
I don't invest in it personally, but we do have some
short-term rental investors.
I feel like there's a lot ofopportunity in Bentonville for
the people that want to come infor the week.
I haven't been paying attentionto it because I'm not a
short-term rental, but there'sbeen some other cities that have
talked about limitingshort-term rentals.

Speaker 4 (49:21):
Do you see that on Bentonville's projection or you
know we've had, we haveconversations about short-term
rentals, there's um, but wehaven't had, we haven't done any
regulation around it.
I think we're kind of watchingit because you also you don't
want the market to getoversaturated with it.
Um, I do think it's we're kindof letting supply and demand
work itself out.
In Bentonville we, you know weuntil recently actually didn't

(49:43):
didn't have any hotels indowntown, but now you're saying
we've gotten, we've got severalgoing up and are up or going up,
and so I feel like that'll kindof work itself out.
Um, as and that's what we'rekind of focusing on um, we do
have neighborhoods that have,you know they're kind of dealing
with that in their own way.

(50:04):
If they have covenants anddifferent things, then you know
you definitely want to make sure, if you're looking in str, what
the neighborhood covenants are,and some of them are, some of
them the neighborhoods aregetting more restrictive because
they they want to know theirnet.
You know they.
Yeah, there's um definitelydifferent feelings about it, but
we've not.

(50:25):
You know the thing about ifyou're tapping or regularly.
I know some cities around ushave done different things, but
you know if the enforcement ispeople want you to turn off
their water.
That's not a great alternativeeither, and so we're really
trying to just let supply anddemand try to work itself out

(50:46):
and um, and then I think, if, ifneighbors are coming together,
they're kind of creating theirown, uh regulations around that,
and so we're, we're kind ofjust the person trying to get
everybody to work together.

Speaker 3 (51:03):
Yeah, absolutely so and I know, I know things can
change.
Uh, you know, there's nopromises for any year, so but I
think it's.
I think, like you said, themarket can kind of regulate
itself, and I think Biddevilleactually is probably way more
ahead of, let's just say,fayetteville, where Fayetteville

(51:23):
it seems like they took waylonger to build hotels that
could accommodate travelers thanwhat Biddeville has, and I
think Biddeville has not had thehotels to accommodate travels
for a long time.
But now we do, and I think,again, that supply is going to.
It seems like there's plenty ofsupply to meet the demand now,

(51:45):
and so, therefore, for someonethat's looking in short-term
rentals, you know, it seems likeit would be less saturated, or
you really have to create aunique, you know, stay if you
will.
Uh, so it seems like that couldregulate itself a little bit.
Um, but I'm no expert in thatand I know that's an ongoing
conversation for most, but, um,but yeah yeah, it's a beautiful.

Speaker 2 (52:06):
I mean let supply and demand dictate itself.
You know that's uh, you knownot to get too political, but
that's a capitalist mindset.
Is that I have let them let themarket dictate itself.

Speaker 3 (52:17):
But that's a capitalist mindset is that I
have to let them, let the marketdictate itself.
So that's a great answer, yeah,so uh, merrill Orman, just as
we as we wrap up, I'd love to Ihave a couple of quick questions
and uh, and then just wouldlove to get any final thoughts
from you.
But, um, if you were this iskind of a fun question here Uh,
I know you love Bentonville as awhole, but if you were
investing today this is for ourinvestor listeners in

(52:38):
Bentonville where are you mostexcited about kind of?
Where growth is kind ofcontinuing to come?

Speaker 4 (52:46):
To be honest with you , like I said, we're very
intentional about having allwards, all areas of the city be
a good investment.

Speaker 3 (52:56):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (52:56):
And so I can't really tell you.
I think it's you know you gotto find the land right now.
You know that's the key towhatever your development, but
that's anywhere right.
And then you know, I think,just from an efficiency
standpoint, you need to findwhere utilities and different

(53:18):
things and where those makesense.
Yeah, and so those would besort of my tips on what to think
about on the front end.
As far as the city ofBentonville, we really are very
intentional about trying to havepark space that is equally

(53:38):
distributed and connections andtrails in all parts of our city.
So I really, to be honest withyou, I don't think you can go
wrong investing in Bentonvilleright now.
It's a good city.
People want to be here and wehave jobs, we have a good
economy and we have a highquality of life.

(53:58):
That's awesome.

Speaker 3 (54:00):
Yeah, I figured you'd give me that answer too.
I mean there's really, like yousaid when I was thinking about
you know, even like crime, likeit's hard to think about an area
where they were in Bentonvilleand I've lived there for five
years now it's hard to think ofan area that has high crime or
anything like that.
So, like you said, just to backup what you said it's hard to

(54:22):
go wrong in Bentonville is whatit seems like.
So, brian, any other questionsfor her?

Speaker 2 (54:31):
Yeah, that's the location.
What about out towards theairport?
What do you see on that?
Everyone talks about the square, which is awesome.
It's hard not to talk aboutthat area around there, but what
do you see as far asBentonville?

Speaker 4 (54:47):
As far as just your land, that southwest part of the
city, that's the growth area.
So, depending on if you'retrying to accomplish density,
the downtown part is going to bewhere people are investing in
that.
But, um, um, definitely thesouthwest part of the city is
where we're seeing growth andthat's where there's um

(55:09):
definitely probably more largerland parcels.
Um, to look at, x&a is growing,the airport's growing, but
that's also a there's a zone outthere, so what you can build
next to the airport, high, anddifferent things you can go, or
some things you need to thinkabout in that area as well.

(55:31):
So, understanding what thezoning is and sort of what.
Again, we've got a land useplan that we want to try to
build out to.
So what, what?
What is the development thatyou're trying to accomplish?
And understanding that piece ofit, and then that might also
help dictate where you want tolook at trying to put that in

(55:52):
the city as well.

Speaker 3 (55:53):
Yeah, absolutely so for you.
Last question here what aresome goals that you have for you
know, as long as you continueto be in public service and kind
of at the helm?
What are some goals that youhave for Bentonville that you
would tell folks listening?

Speaker 4 (56:09):
Well, like I said, we want to remain one of the
safest cities in Arkansas,really across the US, so that's
always going to be one of ourmain objectives.
We want to remain one of thesafest cities in Arkansas,
really across the US, so that'salways going to be one of our
main objectives.
We want to remain a city thatis considered to have high
quality of life.
Right now, because we aregrowing, infrastructure is
really our focus.
So everything from water andsewer to roads we're very

(56:34):
focused on and how do we getthose projects in place along
with the development.
So, even as we're growinghopefully you don't you still
feel safe.
We provide that connectivity,we provide those tunnels.
So if you're on a bike, youfeel safe.
We get our roads and we do havemore.
We do have more traffic.

(56:55):
I'm not going to say that wedon't have more traffic, but we
still.
I can still.
I'm on the very East side ofBentonville and I can get from
my home to downtown, to wherecity hall is, in about seven,
eight minutes.
You know I I can hit theinterstate and then, or I can
hit eight street and get rightover now.
So you know, I can hit theinterstate and then I can hit

(57:16):
8th Street and get right overnow.
So you know, I think that's forme, that's really just focusing
on that.
And then, like I said, we havea huge initiative around our
parks and our gathering spacesand that connectivity of
communities, and so you'll seeus continue to remain focused in
those areas.
We're very laser focused insome areas because we think

(57:37):
we've seen success in beinglaser focused and so that's what
we will continue to do.

Speaker 3 (57:42):
That's amazing.
Well, Mayor Orman, we'regrateful for your time.
I know it's super valuable andyou know, for those that don't
know Biddenville super well,we've got the Fortune One, We've
got top Fortune One, We've gottop-rated schools in Arkansas.
What would be some other thingsthat you would as your sales
pitch to people one last timefor?

Speaker 4 (58:03):
Bentonville, obviously yes, the largest
retailer in the world rightthere.
So supply chain and logistics.
We've seen the announcements inhealth care and more coming.
So we've got the medicalstudents first class on the
ground, if you haven't been bythe Crystal Bridges campus,

(58:25):
which is doubling in size aswell.
So we've got the arts andculture.
I truly feel like we have thebusiness aspect, the arts and
culture aspect, the outdoorrecreation aspect.
We have the jobs and theeconomy.
So when you start to thinkabout what are those key
ingredients for a successfulcity, I think we have those in

(58:47):
Bentonville.
So, as long as we stay focusedand we also stay collaborative
that's a big piece of it.
I think you're going to see usgrow and grow well and welcome
people into our community andthey're going to love.
They're going to love livinghere and I also hope the people
that have lived here forever umwelcome people in and and see
the growth and understand thegrowth and and want to be part

(59:09):
of it.
So we really want to bringeverybody together and just
again continue to have a citythat has a high quality of life
and we grow well together.

Speaker 3 (59:18):
I love it.

Speaker 2 (59:19):
Yeah, it's amazing.
Yeah, I'm not saying that justbecause you're sitting right
next to me, but you've done anamazing job and your foresight
and collaborative you knowmindset has definitely shown.
So we're excited to see thenext, how this next term plays
out and continued Bentonville'scontinued success.

Speaker 3 (59:36):
Absolutely yeah.
There's no, uh, there's noquestion why Bentonville is
having all the success.
So we're we're appreciative ofyou and, and, uh, thankful for
your leadership too.
So thanks again for your time.

Speaker 4 (59:46):
Well, thanks for having me.

Speaker 1 (59:47):
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Again, thank you guys fortuning in.
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Speaker 2 (01:04:20):
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