BENTONVILLE -- Communities are competing for business and growth, and companies are going to move where there is a talented and skilled workforce, a Smart Growth America official said at a public presentation Wednesday.
"We're all competing over place whether we're aware of it or not," said Chris Zimmerman with Smart Growth.
City Growth Plans
Bentonville’s City Council adopted the Bentonville Blueprint, a five-year economic plan in February, and officials are working to develop a plan to guide the city for the next 15 to 20 years. They’re in the process of selecting a consultant to led the process.
Source: Staff Report
Smart Growth America selected Bentonville, along with 13 other communities in the country, in December to participate in its grant-funded technical assistance program. The national nonprofit organization received more than 120 applications for technical assistance from 35 states for its 2015 workshops.
Smart Growth America advocates for better cities, towns and neighborhoods through coalition building, policy development and research, according to its website.
Zimmerman and Roger Millar, also with Smart Growth, met with Bentonville officials and residents Wednesday and today to discuss how to position the city for long-term economic growth.
About 30 people attended the presentation at the library Wednesday evening. The representatives spoke about the economic and fiscal impacts development patterns have on communities.
Those impacts are important to look at as the city embarks on its planning process, Troy Galloway, community and economic development director, said.
"As we move forward and create a plan for the next couple of decades, we want to make sure that that plan takes into account the economic health of this community and that those legacy-type decisions that we make don't put a tax burden...around future generations."
Smart growth is building urban, suburban and rural communities with housing and transportation options near jobs, shopping and school, Millar said.
"If it isn't local, it isn't smart growth," he said, explaining the decisions will be made by the community and city. Smart Growth is a national agency that is here to offer advice, he said.
Zimmerman spoke about how planning decisions effect a community's economy and budget.
He gave a brief history of neighborhood planning and how cars, zoning codes and federal money programs changed the traditional neighborhoods that were compact, mixed-use and built on street grids to spread-out, suburban neighborhoods that divided its residential, business and retail uses.
Demographics with the rise of the Millennial Generation and aging of the Baby Boomer Generation have shifted, and the Millennials have different preferences, he continued.
Millennials chose where they want to live before they chose who they're going to work for, they want more urban living, they value experience over things and they want options in transportation and housing, Zimmerman said.
"Now, there is much more of a focus on sense of place," he said.
The economy has changed from being manufacturing-based to one that places importance on knowledge and a skilled workforce, Zimmerman commented.
Businesses are also moving from suburban areas to downtowns, he said. Retail is seeing a similar trend.
The key is walkability, Zimmerman said.
"There is a price value premium for a walkable place," he said.
The way communities make decisions about planning effects its budget, Zimmerman said. More compact communities save money. Infrastructure and city services cost more to build and operate in areas that are built spread out because there's less development supporting those costs per acre, he explained.
Zimmerman and Millar fielded questions about infrastructure, business incentives and green space from those who attended.
They will present to city officials and stakeholders today as well as hold workshops about strategies that Bentonville could use to grow effectively, Galloway said.
NW News on 04/02/2015