SPRINGDALE — Efforts to revitalize downtown Springdale have accomplished enough to persuade the owners of Bella’s Gifts to return to the area after having been forced out once.

“For us, it’s great,” Morgan Farmer said of the decision to return to an Emma Avenue location.

Farmer owns the gift shop that was opened by her mother in October 2003. The shop moved away from downtown in 2015 when the building it was in was sold. After a few years on the west side of Springdale — years she said were successful for the business — the decision was made to move to the current location at 202 E. Emma Ave. in December 2022.

“I came on board in 2020, and we were watching all the things that were happening with downtown,” Farmer said. “Our location on the west side was successful, but our hearts were always in downtown.”

Farmer said she “grew up” in the area in and around Emma Avenue since her father owned the Sisco Funeral Chapel at 705 W. Meadow Ave. She said she’s seen the area in some tough times and is encouraged by what is happening now.

“I would say around 2012 or 2013 there wasn’t much downtown,” Farmer said. “When we came back it was the right time to complete our journey.”

Downtown Springdale has been the focus of redevelopment projects and proposals for many years.

Jill Dabbs, executive director of the Downtown Springdale Alliance, which works with the city to promote growth in the area, said the sustained growth has been notable in the five-and-a-half years she has been in the city.

Dabbs said the city has been active in developing and updating a master plan for downtown, making changes as needed. She said the city has changed its ordinances and building regulations to permit newer kinds of developments, notably mixed-use developments in the downtown area. She said the city has also approved a downtown dining district to encourage restaurants to offer outdoor dining opportunities and to allow people to buy drinks within the district and take them from one location to another. Dabbs recently told the City Council the Downtown Springdale Alliance will bring a plan to expand the district to the city later this year to accommodate additional businesses interested in participating.

Dabbs said many projects and organizations have combined to prepare the conditions for downtown growth and redevelopment, pointing to The Jones Center, the Arts Center of the Ozarks, the Senior Center, the rodeo grounds and the Springdale Municipal Airport as long-standing elements that give Springdale its flavor. She said companies like Tyson Foods, Walmart and J.B. Hunt have also contributed. Downtown has also seen the revitalization of existing assets like the Apollo Theater and Walter Turnbow Park.

“We were sort of sitting on a bubble at that moment in time,” Dabbs said of the situation when she arrived.

Mayor Doug Sprouse said Springdale has succeeded in keeping its blue-collar image while embracing new growth.

Business growth is still a major contributor to Springdale’s economy. According to a report made to the City Council, in the first quarter of 2024 there were 41,622 people employed in Springdale. The city saw 38 commercial building permits with a value of about $54.8 million issued in the quarter and 110 residential permits with a value of about $64 million issued during the same time.

“Springdale is proud of our blue-collar heritage, and we should be,” Sprouse said. “We have a long history of entrepreneurs, and makers, who knew how to get things done and make great things happen. We are proving that we can honor and celebrate that legacy, while still welcoming new amenities that our residents and others around the region can come and enjoy. I think that’s why, even with all the new development, we are maintaining the authenticity and ‘grit’ that makes our downtown revitalization unique and exciting. We wouldn’t want it any other way.”

Sprouse pointed to the opening of the Razorback Greenway as a major milestone for downtown.

“That was followed by a major capital investment by Tyson, including the reconstruction and expansion of their original offices, and relocating several Tyson employees to downtown,” he said. “Other catalytic downtown projects along the way have included the opening up of Spring Creek, the construction of Walter Turnbow Park, and the reconstruction of Luther George Park, that will open this fall. Whether we are talking about large projects that are currently under construction, the new hotel, the redevelopment of the First Security property, the ‘Big Emma’ project, or countless smaller projects — all are essential to a revitalized downtown.”

Farmer said her business is growing rapidly in the “new” location with much of it driven by people living, dining and walking in the downtown area. She says the ongoing construction in the area causes some pain in her business life, but she sees beyond the temporary inconvenience.

“People are taking an interest in downtown Springdale they didn’t have before,” she said. “I only see that improving from here.” Tom Sissom can be reached by email at [email protected] or on X at @NWATom.