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Regional growth study urges coordination, warns unchecked sprawl will increase costs and strain services
Summary
A Walton Family Foundation-funded study presented to the joint Washington and Benton County quorum courts says Northwest Arkansas faces rapid population growth and that how the region grows will determine infrastructure costs, housing affordability and preservation of rural lands.
A consultant team presenting the Growing Home study told a joint meeting of the Washington County and Benton County quorum courts that Northwest Arkansas must coordinate across jurisdictions to manage a projected rise toward roughly 1 million residents by 2050 and to avoid large infrastructure shortfalls.
Matt Lambert, a consultant with DPC Codesign, said the study — funded by the Walton Family Foundation and presented for the Northwest Arkansas Council — is not a regulatory plan but a strategy that shows how different growth choices drive widely different fiscal outcomes. "Growth can be good for for all," Lambert said while urging coordinated policies to protect rural lands and invest where people live and work.
The report presents several key findings and trade-offs. Lambert told the courts that the region developed roughly 28 square miles in 1985 and about 175 square miles by 2024. Under a business-as-usual scenario the study models more than 240 square miles…
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