Fort Smith directors hear plan for 8‑court indoor sports center, authorize pursuit of MOU

The Fort Smith Board of Directors on Feb. 25 heard a presentation on a proposed indoor sports tourism strategy and an accompanying plan for an 8‑court indoor sports facility and agreed to allow staff to pursue a nonbinding memorandum of understanding (MOU) with private partners to further develop the proposal.

The presentation was led by Ashley Backert, executive director of the Fort Smith Convention & Visitors Bureau, and consultants from Huddle Up Group and Synergy Sports. Backert said the proposal grew from a 2022 facility study and work assigned by the AMP (the city’s A&P/occupancy tax commission) to find a pathway forward. “Every time that person and their group... travel to participate in an event, they are giving that community their money,” Backert said, urging the board to consider capturing that visitor spending in Fort Smith.

Huddle Up Group founder John Schmieder outlined the sports‑tourism index his firm built to benchmark Fort Smith against peer destinations and said the community’s largest gap is year‑round indoor hardwood courts. “Facilities are king,” Schmieder said, summarizing feedback from national event owners that place facilities, destination access, operator capacity and event history as the primary selection criteria. Synergy Sports owner Jason Boudreaux presented possible facility footprints, operations plans and a preliminary financial model that…