Rep. Womack says ‘This is what downtowns are supposed to be like’
With the U.S. House of Representatives out of session for an August recess, Rep. Steve Womack (R-Ark.) paid a visit to Siloam Springs on Thursday afternoon to take some time to reconnect with constituents and visit some local small businesses in the downtown area.
“This is what downtowns are supposed to be like,” Womack said while touring the area.
The afternoon began with a luncheon hosted by the Siloam Springs Chamber of Commerce at 28 Springs, where Womack was able to sit down with the city administrator and representatives of several major industries in town, said Wayne Mays, president and CEO of the chamber. Following this, Womack began his tour of three downtown businesses, where he spoke to business owners, asked questions regarding the general purposes of their business, recent progress they have made and what is to come for them moving forward.
This was largely made possible with the help of staff from Main Street Siloam. Kelsey Howard, executive director, said she was contacted by Womack’s office to coordinate arrangements between Main Street Siloam and the businesses Womack visited. These included the digital marketing company Blogs for Brands, the City Barber Shop and Heather Hill Clothing. Howard also mentioned why his stop in Siloam Springs was an important initia-
tive for Main Street Siloam.
“(His visit) was relevant to our mission as an organization, because I am always eager to show our leaders and especially our legislators around downtown and show off the incredible work that our downtown business owners and building owners have done downtown,” Howard said. “Also, to showcase the improvements as a result of the collaborative effort between the city, the chamber and Main Street Siloam. I specifically wanted to show him the results of state and federal historic tax credit projects.”
The historic tax credit is a tax incentive offered for the purpose of preserving the nation’s historically significant properties. The policy offers a 20 percent income tax credit to property developers seeking to rehabilitate historic buildings due to the higher costs associated with renovating older properties, according to the National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers.
The HTC was an item that had the potential of being repealed or dramatically reduced as part of Cut Taxes and Jobs Act of 2017, but the provision was ultimately preserved at its 20 percent rate, according to a Dec. 20 report from the National Trust for Historic Preservation. This was something that owner of Heather Hill Clothing, Heather Lanker, pointed out as something that she was particularly thankful for, noting that the recent additions she has made would not have been possible if the HTC were eliminated.
As for Womack’s perspective of the area, he said that Siloam Springs seems to be growing much like other cities like Bentonville are, in part because of these historic properties that are being maintained in a way that makes downtown a more attractive environment. He also noted a change that he has observed in recent times in cities across the U.S.
“Downtown is where the central business district was, once upon a time,” Womack said. “And now that a lot of retail and business has moved — in the last several decades — of out of way from that central downtown area, where new malls and class A office space and those kind of things have been built. (But) there seems to be a bit of resurgence going on with some of the old buildings in our downtowns across America. Entrepreneurs recognize that there is something charming about it, and they are investing in some of the redevelopment, and re purposing some of these buildings to be auto garages, office spaces, dance studios, event spaces, professional offices and condos. It is that kind of redevelopment that is giving new life to very old but historically very important parts of American cities, big and small.”
Another legislative official who attended the tour with Womack was State Rep. Robin Lundstrum (R-District 87), who offered her perspective on Womack’s visit and the importance of preserving these properties to ensure the perpetuity of progress in the community.
“Congressman Womack’s experience as a mayor (of Rogers) gives him an extra measure of appreciation into the struggle of business owners and cities who are trying to encourage small business growth in an aging downtown while trying to preserve historical integrity,” Lundstrum said. “The results speak for themselves, the turnaround is amazing. As (a) congressman, Steve Womack has been a good friend to business and all of Siloam.”
Womack has represented the third congressional district of Arkansas since 2011, and is a member of the subcommittees who oversee House Appropriations Defense, Military Constructions-Veterans Affairs and Labor-Health and Human Services, according to an Aug. 21 press release provided by his office. He is also the Chairman of the House Budget Committee and is the co-chair of the Joint Select Committee on Budget Appropriations Process Reform. For more information about Womack, his policy ideas, voting record, press releases, newsletters or contact information, visit womack.house.gov.