People cannot walk around Bentonville’s downtown square, Jonesboro’s Main Street, Little Rock’s River Market Entertainment District or Searcy’s historic downtown without coming across at least one or two new store fronts every couple months.
“We have a very vibrant downtown,” said Mark Young, president and CEO of Jonesboro Regional Chamber of Commerce and Jonesboro Unlimited. “As you drive up and down Main Street and the associated districts there, you’ll see lots of new restaurants and new retail that continues to grow.”
Mark Young, President and CEO, Jonesboro Regional Chamber of Commerce and
Jonesboro Unlimited
A quick glance at the daily headlines for any of the areas also often announces new ground breaks for factories, medical centers or parks.
Everywhere one turns, Arkansas is growing and expanding its economy and possibilities for current and future residents.
That should come as no surprise, since the state consistently ranks high on lists for top states to do business in. One 2024 ranking published in Area Development Magazine ranks Arkansas No. 12 overall and even higher when broken down by specific categories. Arkansas ranks eighth for “overall cost of doing business,” “business incentive programs” and “favorable regulatory environment.”
Supporting businesses small and large across the state does not happen by accident. It involves governmental bodies working together with visitor bureaus, chambers and private companies in a complex ecosystem to make Arkansas cities places that people want to work, live and run businesses in.
“‘Together, we can do so much,’” Searcy Mayor Mat Faulkner said, referencing a mural painted in Searcy that quotes Helen Keller. “It takes all these groups pulling in the same direction to get things done.”
Mayor Mat Faulkner, Searcy
Faulkner said one of the largest industries where the area is seeing growth and plans to see continued growth in 2026 is manufacturing. One reason is Searcy’s central location in the U.S. thanks to Interstate 57.
Searcy has been focused on getting sites ready for big industries that want to come to the area. The city was recently awarded a grant from the Arkansas Economic Development Commission through a new site-readiness grant program to prepare a 44-acre area.
“We hear how easy it is to work with Searcy as far as from a permit standpoint, and our fees are low,” he said.
Little Rock, especially the Port of Little Rock, has been hosting many big players in the site-selection business, said Jay Chesshir, president and CEO of the Little Rock Regional Chamber.
Jay Chesshir, President and CEO, Little Rock Regional Chamber
Jonesboro also received a grant from the AECD to get a site ready to be developed, Young said.
“Having shovel-ready sites across the state of Arkansas is extremely important to us being able to be competitive and to be successful long term as a community and state,” he said.
Chesshir highlighted the new 1,000-acre mega site at the port that is currently being shown to interested parties. He knows whatever businesses the site brings in will have a large impact and ripple effect on the local economy, but finding the business may not happen in 2026.
“Many times those things take quite some time to actually come to fruition, but that’s one thing we’re currently working on,” he said.
While new business coming into Arkansas brings a lot of attention, Chesshir stressed it is more important for chambers and cities to support and help already existing businesses grow.
“That is foundational to any successful economic development program,” he said.
He said the Little Rock Regional Chamber conducts about 300 visits to regional businesses a year to offer support.
For both existing and new businesses to grow, so does the local workforce, both through high school and college education programs and by attracting talent from other areas.
To attract workers living outside the zipcode they work in, cities have to have good infrastructure to allow for easy commutes, something all these cities have been heavily focusing on in 2025 and continue to work on in 2026.
“We’re growing faster than our infrastructure can keep up with,” said Kalene Griffith, president and CEO of Visit Bentonville.
Kalene Griffith, President and CEO, Visit Bentonville
Searcy’s government has created four master plans, one of which is specifically addressing infrastructure concerns. The others look at parks, trails and economic development.
“All of these things go together to make a great place to live and work and raise a family, and people can feel that,” Faulkner said.
One large infrastructure upgrade in central Arkansas was the 30 Crossing Project, which was completed in late 2024. Chesshir said that not only was upgrading this part of the highway important for the safety of the I-30 bridge, but it also helped to make the commute better for those who come from outside of the metropolitan area into Little Rock for work, helping to retain those workers.
One bonus about the new design of the exits is that it opened up a greenspace in the downtown area that is going to be turned into a park. Chesshir said the city is in the early stages of looking at plans for developments there.
“We don’t often look at the liveability aspect as economic development, but it wasn’t just about getting new roads built and new bridges built. It’s about what we now do with that available space that differentiates us from anywhere else in the country?” he said.
Cities constantly look for ways to improve the lives of those who live and work locally.
Searcy just broke ground on a new water park, community center and large trail system, in addition to starting upgrades to a baseball park, thanks to grants and a bond approved in 2024.
“One of the challenges, along with all the growth and the projects, is managing the number of projects, along with city day-to-day operations,” Faulkner said.
Thankfully, in 2025, the city was able to add a few new departments and positions to manage projects and initiatives.
Jonesboro also has many road and city projects, including a community center scheduled for 2026. Young said he hopes the new year brings good weather so that all the projects can stay on schedule.
While he does think some of the new city amenities will increase tourism to the area, he emphasized that they are first and foremost for the citizens of Searcy.
“They are the ones who are funding it,” he said.
Bentonville saw many new exciting opportunities and openings set to benefit citizens and visitors alike.
“I love the city of Bentonville and the state of Arkansas,” Griffith said. “There is this mentality of, ‘What can we do to create the best place for our locals and our visitors?’”
One large investment that has been and will continue to bring in both new citizens and visitors alike to Bentonville is the new Walmart corporate campus.
“I think that is going to be a huge draw for our travelers and our visitors to see the campus but also the business travelers who are looking to experience the campus,” Griffith said.
Additionally in 2026, the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art will complete a large expansion that will increase its overall footprint, which Griffith said will bring people back and possibly turn the museum into a two-day trip.
Medical tourism and education is also a draw to the Bentonville area, especially with the new Alice L. Walton School of Medicine and the Heartland Whole Health Institute.
In Jonesboro, medical schools are making waves, as well, for attracting new workforce. Young said the new ASU school of veterinary medicine will “change the landscape” once it opens.
“Being the first public institution in the state of Arkansas to offer that and to be able to meet that growing need in not just our region but the entire state, we think it’s going to be incredibly important and have tremendous economic benefit,” he said.
He is also optimistic about the new freshman-to-physician pathway program that started at A-State. The college itself has already been around for a decade, and Young said the effects of that can be seen.
“It ensures Arkansas students continue to do their training to become doctors right here in Jonesboro,” he said.
Overall, 2026 is “extremely bright,” for Jonesboro and the whole state, Young said.
“We’re growing fast, but we’re growing smart,” Griffith said.
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