Another local government is considering forming an industrial development authority. The controversial IDA proposals have faced pushback from residents and three failures so far at the county level. Ozarks at Large's Daniel Caruth has the details.
On Monday night, around 80 people packed Highfill City Hall to hear about a proposal to form a board that will help procure and prepare land for industry-ready real estate. The town hall meeting held by the Highfill City Council was to explain and get input for the Highfill Industrial Development Authority, with presentations by the Northwest Arkansas Council and Highfill City Council member Justin Allen.
Allen says when the Northwest Arkansas Airport annexes from the town in 2030, it will take with it an estimated $3 million in tax revenue — and this is a chance to address that loss and control what happens on land near the airport.
"We have over a thousand-plus acres already designated as industrial in land use. Any private company can take the land and develop it into what fits within those confines of an industrial zoning. Our only job is to make sure that whatever is being put on the property in the land matches the zoning. So there's little influence over exactly what it is. And what the IDA would do for us is give us the control we don't currently have."
He says he and other council members watched as three county quorum courts in the area discussed and eventually rejected the formation of an Industrial Development Authority. And while he understands the concerns officials and residents have raised, he says Highfill has taken measures to make sure this board is different than the others proposed.
"We would create a board that's made up of four elected officials of the city of Highfill, plus three residents of Highfill, where that board would have the voting rights to determine what goes on the properties that are in the Industrial Development Authority's purview. And so that's the whole future for us. We have a unique situation as Highfill versus maybe everyone else that was out there."
During the more than three-hour meeting, people raised concerns about the authority, ranging from the potential loss of private property through eminent domain to the possibility of defense contractors moving in, and even the types of jobs that would be available to residents.
Abel Tomlinson of Fayetteville called out the Northwest Arkansas Council's alleged plans to build a military weapons complex on the 1,000 acres near XNA. The plan, called Hephaestus Forge, appears in since-removed online web pages from the Council.
Nelson Peacock, president of the NWA Council, says that project was a marketing tactic drawn up by Council Economic Development Director Ron Maloney without the approval of the council.
"Our goal here is to create new high-paying jobs for people all across Northwest Arkansas. We don't have a hidden agenda around the types of businesses. Even if we did, we can't recruit — it's up to industry whether they come. We sit just like Highfill does. We want to have businesses relocate here, ones that will provide high-paying jobs to the residents that live here. All types of different things could be coming here, but Northwest Arkansas Council would not have any decision-making role in a Highfill Industrial Development Authority. We will not be on the board that makes those decisions."
One of last night's attendees was Chris Long, who grew up in Highfill and lives and works just outside of the city limits.
"Everything for my family started right here in Highfill. My family started out with a 660-acre apple orchard here in Highfill. My shop is currently located on land that's been in my family since 1908. My biggest concern about this whole situation is simply because I'm not within the actual borders of city limits, I'm not counted as a recognized voice because I'm not a city resident. You look at these neighborhoods like the one that went down here — they're filled with people who've come in from out of state. They've only been Arkansas state residents for a year or less. And they have more voice at the city council meeting than I do. And we're standing on land that my family has been an integral part of for over a century."
Long says the fear of losing revenue from XNA is driving these talks, but thinks they don't need the help of an IDA or the Northwest Arkansas Council to recruit jobs and businesses to the area.
"The fact is, Northwest Arkansas natives are being pushed out of Northwest Arkansas because of these economic visions and the ways that these large entities like the Northwest Arkansas Council want to see Northwest Arkansas evolve. Why are we allowing a council — I really don't think we need to take all these demographics and all these cultural studies and all these studies about what's going to be best for Northwest Arkansas when we already have a Northwest Arkansas Planning Commission, we already have all the county governments with their quorum courts and various justices of the peace. We have all these different city councils with all the municipalities in the area. Why do we as Northwest Arkansas citizens, particularly long-term ones, need a council that's made up of multibillion-dollar companies and people who formed this board saying, oh, we sure could use some more of this, or we sure could use some more of that. Why aren't we recruiting the businesses to come in instead of the Northwest Arkansas Council? Highfill could be recruiting those businesses."
Arkansas Act 576 of 2025 made it possible for local governments to create their own development authorities in the state, which are governed by an appointed board. And last week, the Arkansas State Senate voted 31-1 to approve a resolution that would repeal a provision in the law granting industrial development authorities the right of eminent domain. But those changes may have to wait until the next legislative session in 2027.
Allen says one of the questions he wants to better understand is how Act 576 would impact the parameters set under a local IDA ordinance.
"I think I want to answer that question for myself before we get to a vote and say we're doing IDA and not know the answer to that question. There were a lot of great feedback points that were made tonight that I think are super valuable. And they were opposing points of view to me. And as a politician, or a guy who's trying to figure all this stuff out, that's my job — is to listen to both sides of the aisle and figure it out, and hopefully come to a resolution that we believe is truly best for our citizens and our city's future."
He says the city council plans to hold more town hall meetings and does not yet have a timeline for when an ordinance proposal may appear on their agenda.
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