Will Our Butterfield Trail Be a National Historic Trail?

Just imagine – St. Louis, Missouri to San Francisco, California in only 25 days. It may sound like a trip you hope never to make, yet the Butterfield Overland Trail was highly rated back in 1858. It changed both transportation and commerce.


Moving people and U.S. mail was an amazing undertaking back then. The need was great and. John Butterfield, Sr. and his Butterfield Overland Stage Company proved it could be done. The route started in St. Louis and passed through Benton, Washington, Crawford and Sebastian Counties in Arkansas. At Ft. Smith, Arkansas it turned southwest through Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and onward to Los Angeles, California where it turned north to San Francisco.

Mr. Butterfield lived for a time in Fayetteville and built major stables for the company in Fayetteville. Remnants of the original Butterfield Trail are adjacent to the 8th hole at Butterfield Trail Golf Course in Texas. I know of one roadside marker in Springdale commemorating the Butterfield Trail and it is located appropriately on the corner of Butterfield Coach Road and US Hwy. 412. And there is a well in the back yard of a residence in Fayetteville where supposedly where the stagecoach used to stop for refreshment  (I used to live across the street).

Now the National Park Service is studying whether to include the route as a National Historic Trail. It certainly qualifies in my mind.

If you care to comment on the subject, you may do so by May 18, 2012 by contacting:
 

Gretchen Ward
Outdoor Recreation Planner
National Park Service
National Trails Intermountain Region
P.O. Box 728
Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-988-6033
gretchen_ward@nps.gov

If you prefer, you may comment online at the National Park Service Public Comment and Planning website.


For more information:

National Park Service Information on Butterfield Trail
Butterfield Trail Golf Course in Texas

Crystal Bridges Museum to be Free To All – Forever

What a wonderful gift! The Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville promises to be a premier destination for people from all walks of life and now, thanks to an endowment from Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., it will be free to all visitors.

Northwest Arkansas is a remarkable place to live, but most of the cultural events have been centered in Fayetteville with concerts and other events associated with the University and the Walton Arts Center. Then Alice Walton, only daughter of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton, announced plans to build a major art museum in Bentonville, Arkansas.

The grounds and exterior of the buildings are extraordinary. I’ve seen the plans and 3-D models and I look forward to seeing them come to life. Many of the acquisitions of American art made so far are formidable, and the collection continues to grow.

For some people, seeing the exterior is perhaps all they could afford. With that in mind, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., has announced a $20 million endowment to the museum, which will allow free admission to all visitors in perpetuity. Indeed, Wal-Mart’s $20 million gift is a gift to us all.

In addition to Ms. Walton’s personal backing, the Walton Family Foundation recently pledged an $800 million endowment for acquisitions, operations, and future capital improvements. That gift is probably one of the largest ever to an American museum.

So mark your calendars. The grand opening is scheduled for 11-11-11 (November 11, 2011.) I wouldn’t necessarily recommend trying to visit on opening day, but do plan to go at your convenience. It will be worth your time.

In an era where the arts nationwide have repeatedly hit the budget chopping block, a gift like this assures a continuing contribution to the quality of life of NW Arkansas. The museum will expand cultural and economic development not only in Bentonville but also throughout the area. What an opportunity for us all.

For more information about the endowment, click here. The Crystal Bridges website has more information about the building, grounds, collection and programs.

Let’s Keep Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville

There’s been talk of enlarging or building a new Walton Arts Center for more than two years. A feasibility study indicated Northwest Arkansas had grown to the point that it could support an arts center with 2,500 seats.

The existing WAC opened to great fanfare in 1992 in downtown Fayetteville and proved to be the impetus that helped revitalize the entire area. Since then WAC has hosted world famous artists, Broadway shows, ballets, and too many more to list in this space. However, it has only 1,200 seats and limited parking.

The city of Fayetteville owns WAC but it is widely known that the Walton Family Foundation has always been the lead donor.

So it was bad news when the Foundation recently said it would not continue to be the lead donor if a new WAC was not built in Bentonville. To most people, that seemed to mean it would be Bentonville or it just wouldn’t be.

But Walton Arts Center invited proposals for enlarging or building a new arts center and received 24 proposals from cities, chambers of commerce, the U of A, and individuals. The next step will be review of each proposal. The review committee hopes to narrow the proposals down to perhaps three by December 2010.

I know the review will be a daunting task. Personally I would love to see Walton Arts Center stay in Fayetteville and I believe Fayetteville’s proposal stands an excellent chance of approval. It is the only one of the proposals that offered potential funding of approximately $33 million.

That’s not to say Springdale and Bentonville did not make good proposals – they certainly did. I’m just prejudiced by my affinity for Fayetteville. Plus the Fayetteville proposal has the advantage of expanding the facility on the current site.

Wherever the new Walton Arts Center ultimately lands, it will be a major economic benefit to that area.

If you want to view the proposals, click here. For more information, click here.

Walton Arts Center - Grow or Go?

There’s been a lot of talk lately about the future of the Walton Arts Center on Dickson Street in Fayetteville. Has it outgrown its current facility? Can it be enlarged? If a larger facility is needed, will it be in Fayetteville or possibly Benton County?

Along with those questions, the lack of sufficient parking spaces in Fayetteville inevitably surfaces. The city often talks about the need to build a parking garage on the site of the WAC’s current parking lot.

Parking has been a major problem in Fayetteville as long as I can remember.

WAC opened in 1992 and since then has hosted myriad performances such as Broadway shows, YoYo Ma, Bill Cosby, ballet, musicals, ad infinitum.

Fayetteville and Washington County residents have been huge supporters of WAC – there’s no argument about that fact. But, so have Benton County residents and businesses. Attendance at WAC is nearly equal between residents of the two counties, which would indicate WAC would be successful in either county.

Individual contributors are fairly evenly split between the two counties. However, donations by Benton County’s many corporations outpace Washington County donations by a 3-1 margin.

The City of Fayetteville and University of Arkansas jointly own WAC and the city considers it a jewel. WAC was a major impetus in revitalizing run-down Dickson Street and Fayetteville does not want to lose the Walton Arts Center. The University of Arkansas performs multiple shows and concerts in it each year and prefers to have it remain near their campus.

Given all that, there is no doubt that Rogers or Bentonville would be more than happy to see a new, larger WAC more to their area. They have land available with easy access to I-540 and they understand, as does Fayetteville, the economic benefits of a regional arts center.

The first of three feasibility studies has been completed and results indicate NW Arkansas could support a facility of approximately 2,500 seats. The current facility has only 1,200 seats. That makes it much too small for large shows that must sell many tickets to be financially feasible.

Enlarging WAC at its current site would be difficult – but not impossible.

Meanwhile, WAC’s board says it is not planning to move and will make no decisions until after the studies have been completed later this year. No matter whether they choose to grow or go, fund raising would be the next logical step.

So, while all the studies and plans are completed, the subject of a parking garage remains on the table.

Here’s my take on the situation: If, perish the thought, a new and larger WAC is built outside of Fayetteville, the current facility will still be there undoubtedly hosting events that require a concert hall of its size. Additionally, something is always happening on Dickson Street. Parking is a problem now and as the city continues to grow, more parking will be needed.

Let’s not talk the parking garage to death; let’s get started building it.

For more information:

http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2007/12/04/news/120507fzwac.txt

http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2007/12/07/opinion/120807editorial.txt

http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2008/02/09/news/021008azwac.txt

http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2008/03/18/news/031908rzrogersplan.txt

http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2008/03/27/opinion/032808editorial.txt

http://www.nwarktimes.com/adg/News/219737