Visit Bentonville gives project update

Ideas include an indoor sports facility and an entertainment hotel

BENTONVILLE — Visit Bentonville is working with city departments to explore future projects, Kalene Griffith, president and CEO, said Thursday.

Griffith updated the Advertising and Promotions commissioners at its monthly meeting about what steps were being taken after potential projects were identified a month ago at the August planning meeting.

“These are being worked on,” she said, inferring they weren’t just placed on a shelf. “They’re being talked about.”

Griffith said she’s met with, David Wright, Parks and Recreation Department director, to see what a study would cost for an expo center and/or indoor sports facility, which near the top of the priority list at last month’s meeting. They would ask the state to help pay for the study, she said.

“The city is very interested in looking at that as an option,” she said. “It’s a good partnership for us.”

Visit Bentonville is also working with the city’s economic development team to do more research on the possibility of an entertainment hotel — something similar to Great Wolf Lodge, which is known for its indoor water park — a movie theater and larger shopping experiences such as an outlet mall.

Discussion also continues around the idea of an recreational vehicle park. A study has already be completed, and Griffith said she’s contacted high-end RV parks. At least one expressed interest in seeing the study.

“We’re having people come for Crystal Bridges,” she said. “We want to make sure it’s high-quality.”

This is the first year Visit Bentonville as advertised to the RV market, Blair Cromwell, vice president of communications, said.

John Lamparski, sales manager of group tours, said he’s assisted a couple groups that had 15 to 20 RVs during their visit to Bentonville. Those types of groups typically travel for 40 to 50 days at a time all across the country, he said.

Adding performing arts facilities was another main focus in the August meeting. The next steps for that will be to inventory the performing arts facilities in Northwest Arkansas and categorize them by small, medium and large then look at other venues that may have potential to be converted into performing arts spaces in Bentonville.

“We just started that work,” Griffith said.