The Washington County Quorum Court is taking a fresh look at whether to create a pretrial services program. I’m encouraged because, after years of jail overcrowding debates and stalled efforts, this is a practical step the county may finally move forward.
At our Thursday, May 21 meeting, the Washington County Quorum Court voted 12-2 to require Stewart Family Christmas Lights and Stewart Family Fireworks to cease operations until the businesses finally get the permits required under Washington County’s planning and zoning rules. This is a long-running problem going back to at least 2018. Some people may hear this vote and think the Quorum Court is trying to be the Grinch. But the issue before us was whether a high-traffic business in a residential area can keep operating without the same permits that others are required to get.
There have been several important updates since I published my original blog post on the Northwest Arkansas Industrial Development Authority, including an IDA Town Hall in Benton County, the City of Highfill’s proposal for its own IDA, and questions over why some information was deleted from the web the day after my post was published.
Washington and Madison counties rejected the proposed IDA, but the controversy is not over. Benton County is set to revisit it April 13. This post explains the legal red flags, including eminent domain, and new revelations about the Northwest Arkansas Council’s push to use the IDA to give special treatment to military drone and AI-powered autonomous weapon manufacturers that it wants to attract to our region.
On Thursday, March 19, we rejected a resolution calling on local schools to “teach responsible citizenship” to students in the wake of a number of ICE protests and walk-outs in February. I felt this was an overreach because we have no jurisdiction over schools. A special thanks to the teenage organizers who came to the meeting to speak publicly.
In the first week of early voting in the March 3rd election, Washington County has smashed all previous records for a primary vote!
