OCTOBER 2013

C E N T R A LL A N D I N G

DESTINATION CONWAY

‘This project is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our community. The

scale, quality and variety of development Central Land-ing brings to Conway will

truly set us apart’ —

Brad LacyConway Development Corporation president

Faulkner County Business Journal To subscribe call (501) 329-2927 • Log Cabin Democrat2D — Sunday, October 13, 2013

The Conway Area Chamber of Commerce’s 13-in-13 pro-gram will take participants to Snap-on Equipment on Wednesday, Oct. 23, from 10-11 a.m. The 13-in-13 program is free to the employees of Chamber member businesses. Space is available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Through the yearlong pro-gram, individuals have an op-portunity to get an inside look into 13 businesses that have had a significant role in de-veloping Conway’s economy. At each visit, 13 attendees gain insight into the histo-ry and operations of some of Conway’s largest employers. Previous visits have includ-

ed Acxiom, Kimberly-Clark, Hewlett-Packard, Southwest-ern Energy, RockTenn, Nab-holz, the University of Central Arkansas and Virco. A vis-it to Conway Public Schools is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 15, and visits with Central Bap-tist College, Conway Region-al Health System and The Vil-lage at Hendrix will take place later this year.

Snap-on Incorporated is a leading global innovator, man-ufacturer and marketer of tools, equipment, diagnostics, repair information and sys-tems solutions for profession-al users performing critical tasks. Products and services include hand and power tools,

tool storage, diagnostics soft-ware, information and man-agement systems, shop equip-ment, and other solutions for vehicle dealerships and repair centers as well as for custom-ers working in the aviation and aerospace, agriculture, construction, government and military, mining, natural re-sources, power generation, and technical education industries.

Snap-on also derives income from various financing pro-grams to facilitate the sales of its products.

Products and services are sold through the company’s franchisee, company-direct, distributor and Internet chan-nels. Founded in 1920, Snap-

on is a $2.9 billion, S&P 500 company headquartered in Kenosha, Wis.

Snap-on Equipment is the world leader in automotive wheel service and collision re-pair equipment, including the most technologically advanced imagining wheel aligners, wheel balancers, tire changers, alignment lifts, general pur-pose lifts, brake lathes, frame measuring systems and frame straightening racks.

The ISO-certified site opened in Conway in 1973. Two buildings occupy 235,000 square feet of floor space used

to assemble products, such as alignment machines, tire changers, wheel balancers, automated tool control units and collision instrumentation units.

The business and its 185 associates have supported the Conway community for more than 40 years.

Snap-on Equipment pur-chases roughly $42 million in material annually and assem-bles that material into finished goods that are shipped around the world, including finished goods from Conway to China.

For more information or to make a reservation, email Lindsay Wygal at Lindsay@ConwayArkansas.org.

13-in-13 program to visit Snap-on Equipment

Toad Suck Daze re-ceived top honors for its incident command struc-ture during the Interna-tional Festivals & Events Association’s (IFEA) 2013 Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Awards Cere-mony. The ceremony is part of IFEA’s annual convention and expo.

Toad Suck Daze took home the Gold Pinna-cle Award in the cate-gory of “Best Emergen-cy Preparedness & Risk Management Plan for an Event.” During the festi-val, organizers follow an incident command struc-ture to minimize risk and provide emergency management upon ne-cessity.

Toad Suck Daze’s in-cident command is mod-eled after the system used by the U.S. Depart-ment of Homeland Se-curity. The Conway Area

Chamber of Commerce developed the structure with help from the city’s fire and police leadership to ensure clear and effi-cient communication in case of an emergency.

Toad Suck Daze was also recognized for its children’s programming and merchandise. It re-ceived the Silver Pinna-cle Award in the “Best Children’s Programming” category and the Bronze in the “Best Other Mer-

chandise” category.The Pinnacle Awards

draws entries from among the world’s top festivals and events. Win-ning entries came from organizations as diverse as the Kentucky Der-by Festival, Memphis in May International Festi-val, 500 Festival in Indi-anapolis, Pasadena Tour-nament of Roses and the Burlington Sound of Mu-sic Festival in Ontario, Canada.

The recent IFEA con-vention was also an op-portunity to recognize professionals in the festi-vals and events industry who have attained the Certified Festival and Event Executive (CFEE) designation. Mary Mar-garet Satterfield, direc-tor of events at the Con-way Area Chamber of Commerce, was one of five professionals in the country to receive the credential this year. Re-quirements for obtain-ing the CFEE designa-tion include experiential career achievements, re-quired course work, pub-lished articles based on research pertaining to events, professional speaking requirements, and meeting the profes-sional standards of the association and its as-sessment board.

“As a representative of

the Toad Suck Daze festi-val, I have been an active participant at IFEA con-ventions for the past five years,” Satterfield said. “Pursuing my CFEE cer-tification the past two years has provided me with even more vital in-formation that I can ap-ply to the festival and to other events at the Chamber.”

About the Internation-al Festivals & Events As-sociation

Headquartered in Boise, Idaho, the Inter-national Festivals & Events Association of-fers the most complete source of ideas, resourc-es, information, educa-tion and networking for festival and event pro-fessionals worldwide. In partnership with global affiliates under the um-brellas of IFEA Africa, IFEA Asia, IFEA Austra-

lia, IFEA Europe, IFEA Latin America, IFEA Middle East (MENASA) and IFEA North Amer-ica, the organization’s common vision is for “a globally united industry that touches lives in a positive way through cel-ebration.”

**Photo Caption**: Mary Margaret Satter-field (third from right), director of events at the Conway Area Cham-ber of Commerce, has earned her Certified Fes-tival and Event Exec-utive designation from the International Fes-tivals and Events Asso-ciation. Satterfield was one of five professionals in the country to receive the credential at IFEA’s annual convention and expo this year. Photo credit: International Fes-tivals and Events Associ-ation

Toad Suck Daze, Satterfield recognized at international convention

Faulkner County Business Journal Sunday, October 13, 2013 — 3D Log Cabin Democrat • Find our online edition at www.thecabin.net

By ElisE Williams

The Conway Area Chamber of Commerce will host a Small Busi-ness Lunch & Learn on Tuesday, Oct. 29, at the Chamber, located at 900 Oak Street, from 11:30

a.m. until 1 p.m. The Chamber will present the Chamber Alliance Insur-ance Program, the “in-surance package that fits in a small business bud-get.”

This free luncheon and seminar will include in-

formation on the Afford-able Care Act, the Ar-kansas Health Exchange, and what these two pro-grams mean specifically to small businesses. Par-ticipants will also receive information on how the Chamber Alliance Pro-

gram can benefit their business.

CAP is a unique op-portunity for Chamber members in good stand-ing to receive access to affordable insurance ben-efits. Packages include health insurance, group

term life, disability, den-tal and more.

Employees of Cham-ber member businesses can attend the event at no cost.

Reservations are re-quired and seating is lim-ited to the first 40 partic-

ipants. To make your reserva-

tion, visit ConwayArkan-sas.org or email Sandra@ConwayArkansas.org by 5 p.m. Oct. 23.

For more information call the Chamber at 501-327-7788.

Chamber hosts small business Lunch & Learn

By ElisE Williams

The Conway Area Chamber of Commerce’s second annu-al Women in Business Awards luncheon will take place Tues-day, Dec. 3, at the Conway Expo Center and Fairgrounds. The event will begin with a panel discussion at 9 a.m. fol-lowed by the awards luncheon at 11:30 a.m.

“Women in Business is an annual event where the Chamber has the opportuni-ty to honor women who have done outstanding things in our business community,” said director of membership devel-opment Whitney Cummings. “At the event, we will not only announce the five outstanding women in business, but one of those winners will also be named our Diamond Achieve-ment Winner.”

Guest speaker for the event will be Terri Jordan, vice pres-ident of technology for Mi-crosoft Retail Stores. Jordan holds a Bachelor of Science de-gree in Mathematics and Com-puter Science from the Univer-sity of Central Arkansas.

“The thing about corpo-rations is you need diversi-ty, both in gender and oth-er demographics, because it will make for a better prod-uct at the end of the day,” Jor-dan said at a 2011 visit to her alma mater.

In 2009, Jordan was recruit-ed by the COO of Microsoft to be part of the founding leader-ship team of Microsoft Retail stores. Among her many ac-complishments, Jordan formed the IT team that designed

and deployed the technologi-cal groundwork which led to the opening of the first Micro-soft Retail stores in Scottsdale, Ariz., and Mission Viejo, Ca-lif. Jordan and her team also opened a record 35 specialty

stores in a single day on Oct. 26, 2012, and were responsible for developing the first Win-dows Phone POS.

Businesses are highly en-couraged to reserve a table for the awards luncheon. To re-

serve a table, please visit Con-wayChamber.org and click on the Women in Business icon. For more information contact Whitney Cummings at Whit-ney@ConwayArkansas.org or 501-932-5411.

Tables available for annual Women in Business awards

Recipients of the inaugural Outstanding Women in Business Awards in 2012 were, from left, Holly Marr, former vice president/industry executive of Acxiom Corporation; Sonja Keith, co-founder of 501 LIFE Advertising and Publishing; Diamond Achievement recipient Linda Linn, co-owner of Linn’s Auto & Equipment Sales, Just Scrap It! Metal Recy-cling and U-Pull-It of Conway; Brandy Strain-Dayer, Strain Photography; and Toby Hart, founder of Take the Lead Academy Inc. The second annual Women in Business event will take place Tuesday, Dec. 3, at the Conway Expo Center and Fairgrounds.

Faulkner County Business Journal To subscribe call (501) 329-2927 • Log Cabin Democrat4D — Sunday, October 13, 2013

In 2017, central Arkan-sas residents will have a new destination for shop-ping, dining, hotels and

much more. Thursday, before a crowd of 200 area business leaders, the Conway Devel-opment Corporation and Jim Wilson & Associates, LLC of Montgomery, Ala., announced plans to develop jointly more than 150 acres of commer-cial real estate in the heart of Conway, Ark.

Will Wilson, president and CEO of Jim Wilson & Associ-ates, said the project has the potential to solidify Conway’s position as a regional shop-ping destination, spur redevel-opment in aging commercial areas, and contribute new tax revenue and payroll to the lo-cal economy. City officials esti-mate the project will create an additional $2 billion in retail sales and $34 million in addi-tional sales tax collections for the city over a 10-year period.

“Together, with the CDC, we have an exciting new vi-sion for the former airport site,” Wilson said. “We have a 40-year history in the com-mercial real estate business. It has been perfect prepara-tion for a project just like this one. Conway is a great place, a vibrant town; we see great po-tential here.”

Conway Development Cor-poration president Brad Lacy thinks the Conway market is ready for the record-sized proj-ect. “For the last several years,

Faulkner County has been recognized as one of America’s fastest growing counties for population and job growth. We are already an established, re-gional product in many ways. Central Landing will give us the setting to offer new ame-nities, not only to Conway, but central Arkansas.”

A site plan revealed at the announcement featured a life-style component anchored by large retail stores and en-hanced with specialty stores, restaurants, offices and mul-tifamily properties. The retail phase of the project will be up to 750,000 square feet.

“This project is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our community,” Lacy said. “The

scale, quality and variety of development Central Land-ing brings to Conway will tru-ly set us apart.”

About Jim Wilson & Associates

Jim Wilson & Associates LLC, based in Montgomery, Ala., is a privately owned real estate company specializing in shopping centers, residen-tial real estate investments, offices, condominiums, hotels and mixed-use developments. With more than three decades of real estate experience, JWA has developed in excess of 21 million square feet of shop-ping center space.

The company’s development portfolio includes residential

communities and condomini-um residences, mixed-use de-velopments, Class A office buildings, and hotel and coun-try club assets. For more infor-mation, visit www.jwamalls.com.

About Conway Development Corporation

Conway Development Cor-poration is a nonprofit orga-nization created in 1959 to promote the economic growth and development of the city of Conway, Ark., and of Faulkner County, Ark. The CDC at-tracts and secures the location of new business and assists in every way possible the future growth and expansion of area business and industry.

CONWAY DEVELOPMENT

‘Central Landing’ development announced for Conway

Largest project in city’s history wiLL add miLLions to city revenue

‘Together, with the CDC, we have

an exciting new vision for the for-mer airport site. ... Conway is a great

place, a vibrant town; we see great

potential here.’ —

Will Wilsonpresident and CEO of Jim Wilson & Associates

Faulkner County Business Journal To subscribe call (501) 329-2927 • Log Cabin Democrat6D — Sunday, October 13, 2013

Conway Area Chamber of Commerce host-ed its annual

Business Expo on Thurs-day, Oct. 10, at the Con-way Expo Center and Fairgrounds. The event included a breakfast, a business-to-business trade show and Taste of Conway.

At the breakfast, Con-way Development Cor-poration, together with real-estate services and management company Jim Wilson & Associates, unveiled plans to con-struct “Central Landing,” a 150-acre, $90 million mixed-use development at the site of the current airport. (Full story on page 4.) The trade show followed the breakfast and continued through-out the day and evening. This year’s trade show featured more than 100 booths and doubled as a job fair.

Attendees had the op-tion to attend two infor-mative lunch presenta-tions. At 11 a.m., Alan Kizer, owner and opera-tor of Chick-fil-A of Con-way Commons, shared the history behind Chick-fil-A’s outstanding cus-tomer service. At noon, Scott Bennett, director of the Arkansas State High-way and Transportation Department, provided up-dates on highway devel-opments in Conway and Faulkner County.

The day concluded with Taste of Conway. From 5-7 p.m., 25 restau-rants and caterers dis-tributed samples of their best menu items.

This year’s theme was Team Conway. Many ven-dors incorporated a team or sports theme into their booth decorations.

Lunch presenter: Alan Kizer, owner and operator, Chick-fil-A of Conway Commons

Central Baptist College and Kangabloo Creative

River Town BankCentury 21 Dunaway & Hart

Conway Corporation

Log Cabin Democrat

Pearce Heating & Air Conditioning Inc.Modern Woodmen Fraternal Financial

Sandstone Real Estate Group

Lunch presenter: Scott Bennett, director, Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department

Faulkner County Business Journal Sunday, October 13, 2013 — 7D Log Cabin Democrat • Find our online edition at www.thecabin.net

Information provided by pulseofconway.com

Conway Economy at a Glance

Unemployment RateJuly

US .......................... 7.4%Arkansas ................ 7.4%Faulkner County .. 6.7%Conway .................. 6.7%*Faulkner County & Conway not Seasonally AdjustedSales Tax Collections

Conway*July

2013............. $1,828,2242012............. $1,855,774Percent Change -1.5%

Year to date (July)2013........... $13,356,4672012........... $13,199,637Percent Change 1.2%*Tax Rate 1.75%

Faulkner County*July

2013................ $696,3562012................ $711,714Percent Change -2.2%

Year to Date (July)2013............. $4,944,8192012............. $4,934,141Percent Change 0.2%

Annual*2012............. $8,465,6862011............. $8,279,301Percent Change 2.3%*Tax Rate 0.5%

Restaurant Sales*August

2013........... $13,603,8922012........... $13,458,675Percent Change 1.1% Year to Date (August)

2013......... $110,322,1492012......... $108,705,579Percent Change 1.5%

Annual Sales2012......... $153,412,9882011......... $144,646,055Percent Change 6.1%*Including mixed drink sales

Hotel SalesAugust

2013............. $1,547,0342012............. $1,537,226Percent Change 0.6% Year to Date (August)

2013........... $13,340,0582012........... $13,451,516Percent Change -0.8%

Annual Sales2012........... $18,683,6762011........... $18,662,136Percent Change 0.1%

Conway Building Permits

Single Family HomesYear to Date (Sept.)

2013............ 110 Permits2012............ 137 Permits Percent Change -19.7%

Annual2012............ 186 Permits 2011............ 153 PermitsPercent Change 6.9%Average Construction

Cost*Year to Date (Sept.)

2013................ $224,7142012................ $210,246Percent Change 6.9%

Annual2012................ $207,5372011............... $204,387Percent Change 1.5%

Average Square Footage*

Year to Date (Sept.)2013...................... 2,9652012...................... 2,933Percent Change 1.1%

Annual2012...................... 2,9102011...................... 2,814Percent Change 3.4%Average Construction Cost Per Square Ft.*Year to Date (Sept.)

2013.................... $75.792012.................... $71.68Percent Change 5.7%

Annual2012.................... $71.332011.................... $72.64Percent Change -1.8%*Total under roof

Lottery SalesFaulkner County

September2013............. $1,162,2422012............. $1,072,401Percent Change 8.4%

Year to Date (Sept.)2013........... $12,087,7972012........... $12,800,495Percent Change -5.6%

Total StateSeptember

2013........... $32,483,1662012........... $30,622,480Percent Change 6.1%

Year to Date (Sept.)2013......... $333,620,6932012 ........ $345,394,343Percent Change -3.4%

Natural GasSeverance Tax

DistributionConway

July2013.................. $27,1162012.................. $11,760Percent Change 130.6%

Year to Date (July)2013................ $157,4942012................ $109,308Percent Change 44.1%

Annual2012................ $162,4572011................ $254,822Percent Change -36.2%

Faulkner CountyJuly

2013.................. $22,0152012.................... $9,515Percent Change 131.4%

Year to Date (July)2013................ $127,8182012.................. $88,412Percent Change 44.6%

Annual2012................ $131,4182011................ $204,052Percent Change -35.6%

Wellhead Price per MCF*

Yearly Average2012......................$2.662011......................$3.952010......................$4.482009......................$3.672008......................$7.97*MCF=1000 cubic feet

Number of Active Wells*

Faulkner County ...... 350Total in Field ......... 4,481*As of December 12, 2012

Estimated Life TimeValue of Production*

Total Field ......................$11,382,327,198*As of September 30, 2012

By RogeR Lewis

Imagine standing on a street in Conway looking at a newly-built house. It might be an av-erage 2013 house (2400 square feet, $250,000) or it might be a smaller “starter house,” built for first-time buyers. In either case, the price of the house reflects both the cost of construction and the cost of the lot.

For the past several years construction costs have been relatively stable because nei-ther materials nor labor have in-creased significantly. Construc-tion includes garage, porches, and everything under the roof. According to building permit ap-plications in 2013, construction costs in Conway are about $75 per square foot.

Lot costs, however, are a dif-ferent story. Although twenty years ago you could buy a build-ing lot in a new subdivision for around $15,000 to $20,000, to-day, it is difficult to find any-thing under $35,000 and if you do it is likely to be a much small-er lot. Lots in Conway are gener-ally in the $40 to $60 thousand range. The effect of this dramat-ic increase in the cost of lots is that newly constructed “start-er houses” have almost vanished from the market.

In past decades many subdivi-sions were developed in Conway that provided housing for fami-lies with a variety of incomes. This was possible because there was plenty of undeveloped land in sizable tracts within close proximity to existing utilities. This land was developed for rea-sonable amounts with the result that starter homes were avail-able.

Undeveloped parcels of land in Conway that are zoned for residential use run $25 to $50 thousand per acre. After using approximately 20% to 25% of the land for roads and right-of-ways, a parcel could yield 2 to 4

lots per acre, which results in a figure of approximately $7,000 to $25,000 per lot. However, it is not the cost of the land that drives up lot prices. It is the cost of supplying the lots with streets and utilities.

The city of Conway and the Conway Corporation have very stringent specifications and re-quirements for roads and util-ities, which developers tell me are the most stringent in Arkan-sas. This may be true, but any development in the city limits of Conway is first class. Streets have curbs and gutters and sur-face water drains away. Side-walks are required and streets are built to a standard that will last. Material specifications for water and sewage lines call for the highest quality.

Often a major development cost is for offsite work, such as bringing sewer and water to the subdivision from some distance or accommodating for surface water drainage. Sometimes a de-veloper may be required to size a water or sewer line to include future developments in the area. The cost of running sewer lines is approximately one million dollars a mile, and that is just to the property. After bringing utilities to the edge of a subdivi-sion, they must be disseminated throughout.

Engineering fees, roads, and utilities can amount to $20,000 to $50,000 per lot. One develop-er said that the stars have to be aligned just right to get devel-opment costs down to $20,000 per lot and in that case the util-ities would have to already ex-tend to the site. As Conway ex-pands there is very little land left where utilities are already at the site.

The only exception to this scenario is to find a sizable lot in an older section of town that can be subdivided into several lots. Such a development requires no new streets and no utilities oth-er than hook up costs. The or-

ganization, Habitat for Human-ity has used this tactic to build starter houses for low-income participants in that organiza-tion.

The significant increase in residential lot prices is not a problem isolated to Conway. An article in USA Today report-ed that in the 27 leading mar-ket areas, finished lots ready for building were up 40% from a year ago. In locations such as At-lanta, Phoenix, and Las Vegas, lot prices were up 65 to 75 per-cent. Lot prices have risen fast because of limited supply, espe-cially in popular neighborhoods, and the increasing demand for new homes.

This dramatic increase in lot prices has changed the way de-velopers and builders do busi-ness. In the past, people often bought a lot and then hired a contractor to build a house. Now, developers have to turn the lots into cash quickly to recover their large investment. They can’t af-ford to wait for a number of in-dividuals to buy single lots from them. Today, a developer may sell a builder several lots at a reduced price to recover some of their investment. This stimu-lates construction in the subdivi-sion. Many developers are also in construction, building hous-es as a turnkey product and roll-ing the development costs of the land into the sale of houses.

As for the future I predict that as Conway continues to grow, single-family homes on sizable lots will yield to patio homes and multi-family units such as apartments, condominiums or town houses. Most of the single-family homes will be higher-end custom homes.

I thank my friend Chris Spatz for editing and helping me with this article.

You can obtain more information on the economy of Conway and Faulkner County by going to the Pulse of Conway website (www.pulseofconway.com).

Conway’s subdivision development: The past, present and the future