Area chamber shares vision for Rogers, Lowell

ROGERS — The Rogers-Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce shared its vision Thursday for the two cities.

The Vision 100 community action plan was the focus of the Leadership Conference attended by about 175 residents from Rogers and Lowell.

The plan addresses key areas, including city beautification, prioritizing education, healthy living, attracting amenities, diversity, municipal services, quality of life and the economy.

“Growing the Rogers’ economy means creating a destination where businesses need to be,” said J.R. Shaw, Visit Rogers executive director.

Shaw said the city must strive to be a place where people want to visit, which will in turn allow it to become one in which people will want to live and work.

“One builds upon the other,” he said, saying becoming a travel destination will improve the city’ public image.

As much as Visit Rogers seeks to increase tourism, Shaw said all efforts are made to benefit residents.

“Our customers are truly our residents and the people of Rogers, and we do everything for their benefit,” he said.

The plan was updated in 2015 and will address the cities’ needs as they prepare for significant increases in population, said Raymond Burns, chamber president and CEO.

“What we’re here to do is plan for the future of the community,” said Rogers Mayor Greg Hines.

The cities’ community action plans historically have been based on projected changes by year, Hines said. However, the growth the cities are experiencing made it relevant to plan based on projected changes in the size of their combined populations, rather than a timeline, he said.

Burns said the cities had a combined population of 77,022 in 2018 and will exceed 100,000 in 10 years at the current growth rate.

The process of developing the new plan began about 18 months ago when Rogers started examining the state of the city and how planners got there, said John McCurdy, Community Development director.

The chamber then sought community input by developing a steering committee of 25 leaders from Rogers and Lowell, according to the plan. The committee formed the vision statement to incorporate the communities’ values.

“Our vision for Rogers and Lowell is a vibrant, diverse, and cohesive community in the heart of Northwest Arkansas, with a willing spirit, a healthy focus and a progressive attitude, possessing the core values of faith, family, community, education and economic prosperity,” Burns said.

That vision helped shape 11 community brainstorming sessions and an online survey used to gather additional input in July, according to the plan. Some 284 participants went to the brainstorming sessions, and 292 people took the online survey.

Rogers and Lowell embrace involvement, as evidenced by the number of people who participated in the process, said Ross Phillips, chamber vice president of community development.

“We cannot do this alone,” Phillips said. “We don’t want to do this alone.”

Lowell Mayor Chris Moore said being part of the planning is an amazing opportunity.

“Not every community gets to participate in a process that will literally shape a city,” Moore said. “This is truly something as a city that we are proud to be part of.”

The plan is just the most recent tool for helping to map the cities’ futures, Burns said.

“This will be a working document that will last us until we need to do it again,” he said.