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Your NWA Wishlist


TRB

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I hope it’s ok to resurrect an older thread.  This is more of a fantasy list, because I think some of this probably won’t happen… It mainly a list that I have been randomly compiling in my head since I moved here.  Also, please don’t think I’m griping in any way… I love living here.  Every area has its pros and cons… but since it’s a wish list, it’s stuff I’d like to see or see happen.

 

- I-540 widened to 6-8 lanes, with auxiliary lanes in appropriate locations, as stated in the 2006 study of I-540 (Really, they probably shouldn’t be relying on a study that old considering the changes that have happened since then).  From what I’ve seen and read, it just looks like AHTD is adding an extra lane on each side, instead of following what the study stated (I could be wrong).  If that is the case, it’s going to cost them way more in the long run.  It seems they should have learned this when they first constructed I-540 in the 90s.

- Western Beltway… http://www.nwarpc.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=100&Itemid=131
The final study says it’s feasible

- A central bus service, better access and communication to bus route info… I have never quite understood the bus system(s) here

- Park & Ride system

- Improve grid-system of streets (aka fix the street disjoints, and an arterial every 1 mile) Example in Overland Park/Olathe, Kansas: http://goo.gl/maps/LBQkm

- Better access management (i.e. stop building 5 lanes roads with a center turn lane, unless absolutely necessary).  Build roads with a center median, e.g. SW I Street between SW 14th Street and SW 41st Street in Bentonville (to me, this is the perfect street… It has a raised center median, street lighting, and wide sidewalks on both sides).  It not only improves safety, but also aesthetics.  I think it’s starting to catch on here.  If a raised center median is applied in an already developed area, many businesses will object to it (I’ve seen it first-hand).  Motorists will quickly become accustomed to how it works.  The newly constructed US 412 through Siloam Springs is an example of this.

- More sidewalks and street/road lighting... Both are such easy fixes that improve safety for motorists, pedestrians, and bicyclists.  This seems to be improving.  The first time I drove here, at night, I felt like I was driving in a rural area, in the complete dark.

- Street name changes between towns (An example:  8th Street in Rogers becomes Bloomington Street in Lowell, which becomes Thompson Street in Bethel Heights and Springdale, which becomes College Avenue, Archibald Yell Blvd, and School Avenue in Fayetteville).  This also ties in the “Merging Cities” poll I saw on this forum.  I think having so many different municipalities hurts in the long run.  The area is really unique, because you don’t have a core city with suburbs… You just have multiple cities.  Johnson and Little Flock need to be annexed into the larger cities.  I have no idea why either of those have their own police departments.

- Revitalization of some of the older areas… Aesthetics play such a huge role in how citizens and out-of-town visitors view an area.

- Better access to planning documents, city government information online… More openness in city governments, and better communication between the public and the local governments and departments.

- Have separate affiliates for ABC and CBS between NWA and Fort Smith.  Right now, NBC (KNWA) is the only one that is solely in NWA.  I don’t mind seeing Fort Smith news, but I think each market could support themselves.

- Bigger, better zoo… The one outside of Gentry is nice and has charm, but I think our area could definitely support a larger, more modern zoo.  And the new zoo would complement the Crystal Bridges Museum

- More parks!

- More grocery store options, like Hy-Vee, Kroger, Trader Joe’s, etc… This is high on my list.  Hy-Vee has a location in Springfield and was looking at Joplin.  I used to live up north in Hy-Vee-land, and they are an amazing grocery story… Harp’s doesn’t even compare.  And, I’ve heard that once Trader Joe’s builds a distribution center in Dallas, that NWA is on their radar.

- Combine the two county fairgrounds

Like I said, I hope this doesn’t sound like a gripe list!

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I think a Dave & Busters would be a great addition around the NWA Naturals ballpark area.  

 

I think this has also been said before but a large scale aquarium in that area would also be fantastic.

 

The completion of the Osage Creek Amphitheater.  Would love to see major bands in a 18,000 seat outdoor setting.

 

More technology/aerospace sector jobs.  Every year the U of A produces a ton of engineering and/or computer science grads, most of whom move away to Dallas or other major cities.  I'd love to see a major firm e.g. Texas Instruments, Boeing, etc., come to town.

 

(This one's a stretch...)  Would LOVE to see the U of A  & the SEC start competing in Div. 1 Men's Ice Hockey -- and with that build a decent hockey arena.  The current intramural team has a great following and tickets at the Jones center are hard to get since the venue is so small.   

 

Better electric car charging infrastructure.  Would love to see major corp.s in the area bring in charging stations in their work parking lots, see more charging stations in parks and along high traffic areas.

 

That's all I've got.  :)

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I think a Dave & Busters would be a great addition around the NWA Naturals ballpark area.  

 

I think this has also been said before but a large scale aquarium in that area would also be fantastic.

 

The completion of the Osage Creek Amphitheater.  Would love to see major bands in a 18,000 seat outdoor setting.

 

More technology/aerospace sector jobs.  Every year the U of A produces a ton of engineering and/or computer science grads, most of whom move away to Dallas or other major cities.  I'd love to see a major firm e.g. Texas Instruments, Boeing, etc., come to town.

 

(This one's a stretch...)  Would LOVE to see the U of A  & the SEC start competing in Div. 1 Men's Ice Hockey -- and with that build a decent hockey arena.  The current intramural team has a great following and tickets at the Jones center are hard to get since the venue is so small.   

 

Better electric car charging infrastructure.  Would love to see major corp.s in the area bring in charging stations in their work parking lots, see more charging stations in parks and along high traffic areas.

 

That's all I've got.   :)

One of the stated goals of the UofA Athletic masterplan is an arena to replace Barnhill. A facility I would look at is the one in Independence Mo. Events center that has a community ice rink attached to it that you could design with seating. With the continued growth of the U of A, a new HYPR has to be a consideration, the ice rink could part of that as well as it is with many rec centers around the country. But I really like the design of that facility I mentioned 6,500 with lots of suites. The Allen Tx arean is another but it's larger. I'd even suggest the Lander's Center in Southhaven MS. but it's near 10,000 and likely too large.

 

The Independence arena

31_722_2010.jpg

 

31.Independence_718_2010.jpg

 

Ice center annex

31.Independence_716_2010.jpg added seating to ice annex for club team

post-29082-0-79755200-1385214874_thumb.j

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Speaking of Ice, I know that a splash pad is one of the wants of the new regional park in Fayetteville. While I'm a proponent of a larger aquatic center. I'd rather see a private enterprise like the one I showed earlier in this thread around Arvest Park. But I know that Bentonville has had great success with it's ice rink, so here's my suggestion for Fayetteville that I stumbled on recently

 

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make it year round with a water play area like the new one at War Memorial Park in LR in the area in the middle of faux stream

post-29082-0-71942000-1385214673_thumb.j

 

Also consider a man made sledding hill that would double up as a lawn seating area for the desired amphitheater

 

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How bout the start of a theme park that some of us with some years under our soles remember?

 

A new Dogpatch

 

Here's my vision.

 

It would start as a highly themed Family Entertainment Center with indoor and outdoor elements. There would three themed mini golf courses. Two outside and one on the inside that would be a glow in the dark cave theme all based on the classic comic strip. The two outdoor course would have a water ride and a mine train coaster with a few flat rides as part of it all. The rides would interact with each other and the courses themselves. The mine train would cross the water ride's splash area and so on. There would be a plan in place to add additional rides that over time adds to the themed outdoor area. As part of the FEC, the indoor course would also have an entrance from an enclosed area that features indoor rides and attractions like a ropes course, play structures, birthday rooms, eatery and so on. This gives the place a year round operation model. As part of the development a themed hotel with an indoor waterpark, all themed to Dogpatch, of course. Part of the marketing would be to animate the strip,(with an agreement from the estate) for social media to spread the word.

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Dave & Busters would do well here, and everyone I've talked to wants it.  Along with a Trader Joe's... But according to https://www.facebook.com/bringtraderjoestonwa , they'll be here once a distribution center is built in Dallas.

 

I'd like to see an aquarium/zoo here.  I like the Dogpatch idea... There are so many routes you could go with that.

 

I love the bowling ideas too.  The only bowling alleys I'm familiar with is Fast Lane in Lowell, and I've driven past the one of Walnut in Rogers.

 

And the electric car charging stations!  Yes.

 

On a side note, I think once the Don Tyson interchange is opened, that is going to open a lot of potential development, near the ball park in Springdale.  And, Walmart is building a store on Elm Springs at I-540... I wish it was something else though.

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Dave & Busters would do well here, and everyone I've talked to wants it.  Along with a Trader Joe's... But according to https://www.facebook.com/bringtraderjoestonwa , they'll be here once a distribution center is built in Dallas.

 

I'd like to see an aquarium/zoo here.  I like the Dogpatch idea... There are so many routes you could go with that.

 

I love the bowling ideas too.  The only bowling alleys I'm familiar with is Fast Lane in Lowell, and I've driven past the one of Walnut in Rogers.

 

And the electric car charging stations!  Yes.

 

On a side note, I think once the Don Tyson interchange is opened, that is going to open a lot of potential development, near the ball park in Springdale.  And, Walmart is building a store on Elm Springs at I-540... I wish it was something else though.

That Bowling Lane idea is not a Bowling facility but  think of it as a restaurant/sports bar with lanes on Dickson St. It's certainly not kid oriented in anyway

 

Do a google image search on Kings Bowl.

 

As for the zoo, expressed some of that early in this thread.  Zoo's tend to grow slowly, they are expensive. . That's where one should start and I'll again mention that NWA, not including the Ft. Smith Center, has yet to get a Nature Center from the AG&F not taking into account  all the sales tax revenue this region generates just for them. You have an organization that has a dedicated tax yet does not answer in any way to the voters. Commission seat appointments are political favors to supporters of the Governor. That needs to change .Anyhoo, back on topic.

 

A Zoo, should it start, first priority should be to build first case exhibits and they should first focus on what's native to Arkansas. What we have is a state that was and is very biologically diverse. Panthers/Cougars, Black Bear, Bison, Elk, deer and even strange things like the Prairie Chicken. I think an Arkansas themed habitat like the Northwest Passage and Teton Trek exhibits at the Memphis Zoo along with an Aquarium that focused on all things in the water world. Things like gators, otters, beavers, fish found here, from spoonbills to the absolutely prehistoric alligator gar featured with a planned future expansion into the saltwater world one day. This aquarium is where the Game and Fish should come in with funding for sponsorship rights.

 

You'll hate this M-86, the Zoo should have a permanent habitat for the UofA's Tusk, the Russian Boar breeding program to represent the Razorbacks.

 

Here' where I'll go off the deep end, how about making it a Zoo/Theme park like Busch Gardens in Tampa or Wild Adventures in Georgia. A it grows, have a few rides themed to the animals represented. Certainly not a full on theme park but a mix to appeal to a larger market. I'll suggest a wood rollercoaster, that's named, the Razorback or Tusk to get started.

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From a planning standpoint I see the west Springdale area around the ballpark having the potential to be a smaller version of Arlington, Texas.  Arlington is located between the major population hubs and serves as the family entertainment hub of the entire region.  Arlington has the ballpark for the Rangers, Cowboys Stadium, Six Flags, etc..   West Springdale would be a perfect central point in the region to host things like a regional zoo, regional aquarium, theme park, and just about any other major entertainment venue that would depend on the population of the entire region to be successful.


Oh yeah, I should have added a Cheesecake Factory to that list.  :)

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The West Springdale area could be major entertainment.  I would put in Dave & Busters, a Top Golf (they have one in Allen, TX), and outlet mall (Allen, TX), a Zoo, a Bass Pro Shop, major Hilton or Marriott Hotel, a Water Park, an IKEA, and themed restaurants.  I think it would do phenomenally well here.

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You'll hate this M-86, the Zoo should have a permanent habitat for the UofA's Tusk, the Russian Boar breeding program to represent the Razorbacks.

 

Here' where I'll go off the deep end, how about making it a Zoo/Theme park like Busch Gardens in Tampa or Wild Adventures in Georgia. A it grows, have a few rides themed to the animals represented. Certainly not a full on theme park but a mix to appeal to a larger market. I'll suggest a wood rollercoaster, that's named, the Razorback or Tusk to get started.

I don't hate the idea.  I'm embracing the Razorback!  :)

 

I can't remember if I said it, but how about a tie-in with Crystal Bridges, in terms of marketing.  You'll have an art museum, a zoo, and a potential small theme park.  Make it a destination!

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I don't hate the idea.  I'm embracing the Razorback!   :)

 

I can't remember if I said it, but how about a tie-in with Crystal Bridges, in terms of marketing.  You'll have an art museum, a zoo, and a potential small theme park.  Make it a destination!

 

I don't hate the idea.  I'm embracing the Razorback!   :)

 

I can't remember if I said it, but how about a tie-in with Crystal Bridges, in terms of marketing.  You'll have an art museum, a zoo, and a potential small theme park.  Make it a destination!

CB will be getting the larger performance hall as a neighbor one day. I'd rather see a zoo go somewhere else. Memphis has an art museum as a neighbor to it's zoo and I don't think either does much for the other.

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CB will be getting the larger performance hall as a neighbor one day. I'd rather see a zoo go somewhere else. Memphis has an art museum as a neighbor to it's zoo and I don't think either does much for the other.

Good point... I wish Bentonville would have gone forward with the J Street interchange with I-540, or even NW A Street, which turns into Slaughter Pen Road outside of Bentonville (according to Google Maps)... Classy.  

Maybe they will in the future.  It's open land, and would be perfect for a zoo, hotels, etc.  The terrain might be an issue, but it can definitely be dealt with.

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Slaughter Pen Zoo!!! what  a name.

I have said it before in regards to a zoo, but I think in addition to a tusk exhibit, Turpentine Creek, and Gentry Zoo should have permanent involvement.

I think that since zoo's do in fact take a long time to develop, it would be good to develop the site with a Nature Center, maybe in connection with Hobbs State Park. Add a very large, very desirable park with plenty to do.

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Slaughter Pen Zoo!!! what  a name.

I have said it before in regards to a zoo, but I think in addition to a tusk exhibit, Turpentine Creek, and Gentry Zoo should have permanent involvement.

I think that since zoo's do in fact take a long time to develop, it would be good to develop the site with a Nature Center, maybe in connection with Hobbs State Park. Add a very large, very desirable park with plenty to do.

 

I like the Nature Center idea... I've never been to Hobbs State Park.  In fact, I had to look it up on Google Maps.  

Unfortunately, AHTD has made a mess out of the routing of Highway 12 (it was recently changed), and there's random "Scenic Highway 12" signs in Rogers, along with random AHTD Highway 12 signage.

 

I think having a zoo at Hobbs State Park is a little too far out.  But like others have said, a zoo takes time to build.  

 

All of that fortune that the Waltons are sitting on, and they do little for this area.  Crystal Bridges is nice, but jeez, so much more could be done.

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I like the Nature Center idea... I've never been to Hobbs State Park.  In fact, I had to look it up on Google Maps.  

Unfortunately, AHTD has made a mess out of the routing of Highway 12 (it was recently changed), and there's random "Scenic Highway 12" signs in Rogers, along with random AHTD Highway 12 signage.

 

I think having a zoo at Hobbs State Park is a little too far out.  But like others have said, a zoo takes time to build.  

 

All of that fortune that the Waltons are sitting on, and they do little for this area.  Crystal Bridges is nice, but jeez, so much more could be done.

Hold on, man...The Walton's pump over $1Billion into a museum that has completely changed Bentonville, financed and developed miles upon miles of trails in Bentonville, $15M into the Razorback Greenway trail system, donate over $20M per year to local charities through their family foundation, $300M plus to the U of A, New Walton Arts Center, etc, etc.

 

You are WAY off base here.

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I like the Nature Center idea... I've never been to Hobbs State Park. In fact, I had to look it up on Google Maps.

Unfortunately, AHTD has made a mess out of the routing of Highway 12 (it was recently changed), and there's random "Scenic Highway 12" signs in Rogers, along with random AHTD Highway 12 signage.

I think having a zoo at Hobbs State Park is a little too far out. But like others have said, a zoo takes time to build.

All of that fortune that the Waltons are sitting on, and they do little for this area. Crystal Bridges is nice, but jeez, so much more could be done.

Hi m_86. I blame the city for not doing more with the tax revenue from all of the businesses the Walton family business has brought to the area.
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I moved here in May and am surprised that there is not a zoo around here.  That is definitely something that I'd like to see in the near future as it's something both adults and kids can enjoy.  

 

On a much smaller scale, I'd love to see Quiktrip expand to NWA!  I mean, they are based out of Tulsa.  Caseys and Kum and Go are nice, but they definitely don't compare to Quiktrip!

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  • 5 months later...

The latest little thought of mine would be to renovate the UARK Theater building on Dickson into an Imax theater. I know, keep dreaming.

Anywho, a little drive to the east/northeast will now offer the area this: http://www.big-cedar.com/Page/Top-of-the-Rock.aspx

SILVER Dollar City has not announced it yet but are already working on a new area that will house at least 5 rides.

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We need some more gas stations here as much as new Banks. Maybe QT can buy out K&G. Personally I would like to see more White Oak Stations.

 

Gentry Zoo is the closest zoo like experience. Turpentine Creek is interesting, but I don't support the ownership there.

 

White Oaks are nice but their gas prices aren't.  Still not fond of the one at Pinnacle Hills for going so long without indicating that the big price they show on the building was for paying with cash only.  I understand it's common for a lot of gas stations to stagger their prices depending upon payment method, but to only find out when you've already stopped and gotten out at the pump doesn't seem right.  

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We need some more gas stations here as much as new Banks. Maybe QT can buy out K&G. Personally I would like to see more White Oak Stations.

 

Gentry Zoo is the closest zoo like experience. Turpentine Creek is interesting, but I don't support the ownership there.

What's the deal with TC ownership?

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For a rescue center to be involved with breeding, even if it is thru personal purposes, is somewhat of a contradiction.

I have family that lives all around that area, and some of the stories... even if they are embellished likely have some truth.

It could very well be under different ownership, as what I know is 5+ years old...

 

I also know someone who was a longtime caretaker at Gentry zoo, and it was always good things to say.

 

I like what TC has done, I am glad they are here, and it is an interesting place.

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