America’s Car-Mart amended its credit agreement with lenders, securing a $200 million credit line made public in a federal filing Friday (Oct. 10). The prior credit limit was $145 million.

The amendment allows for increases up to an additional $55 million and extends the term to Oct. 8, 2017. The applicable interest rates under the new terms are based on the company’s consolidated leverage ratio for the preceding fiscal quarter and provides for 0.125% increase in each of the three existing pricing tiers.

The current applicable interest rate under the amendment is generally LIBOR plus 2.375%. Borrowings are secured primarily by accounts receivable and inventory of the respective subsidiaries.

The amendment also resets the $40 million aggregate limit on repurchases of company stock.

The Amendment required a closing fee of $217,500 and an arrangement fee of $32,500.

Import cargo volume at the nation’s major retail container ports is expected to see a final surge and set a new monthly record in October as the holiday season approaches, according to the National Retail Federation.

“Increasing congestion at the nation’s ports as well as the ongoing West Coast labor negotiations are ongoing concerns and retailers are making one last push to make sure they’re stocked up for the holidays,” NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said. “Retailers are working hard to make sure customers can find what they’re looking for regardless of what happens at the ports.”

Import volume at U.S. ports covered by Hackett & Associates’ Global Port Tracker report is expected to total 1.53 million containers this month, topping the 1.52 million monthly record set in August. Cargo volume has been well above average each month since spring as retailers have imported merchandise early in case of any disruption on the docks.

The contract between the Pacific Maritime Association and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union expired on July 1, prompting concerns about potential disruptions that could affect back-to-school or holiday merchandise. Dockworkers remain on the job as negotiations continue but the lack of a contract and operational issues have led to record congestion at the ports.

The 1.52 million containers handled in August, the latest month for which after-the-fact numbers are available, was up 1.5% from July and 2.1% from August 2013.

September was estimated at 1.48 million containers up 2.8% from the same month last year, and October’s forecast of 1.53 million containers would be up 6.4% from last year.
November is forecast at 1.39 million containers, up 3.7%, and December at 1.37 million containers up 3.9%.

Those numbers would bring 2014 to a total of 17.1 million containers, an increase of 5.3% over 2013.

“The consumer is back,” Hackett Associates Founder Ben Hackett said, citing reduced unemployment, improved consumer confidence and other indicators. “That’s all good news for retailers, ports and shipping lines.”

While cargo volume does not correlate directly with retail sales it is a barometer of retailer’s expectations. The NRF has forecast a 4.1% holiday season sales growth with 3.6% sales growth for 2014 overall.

J.C. Penney announced that Marvin Ellison, a vice president at Home Depot, will be joining the retailer Nov. 1 and assuming the CEO role from Mike Ullman in August, after a training / transition period. Ullman said he will stay on executive chairman for a full year.

Ellison, 49, has spent 12 years at Home Depot and 15 years at Target.

“I am honored by this appointment and excited about the opportunity to help lead the continued resurgence of J.C. Penney. This company has been an important part of the American retail landscape for over one hundred years,” Ellison said in a press release. “Today, it is moving in the right direction and there is an extraordinary passion to win at every level of the organization.”

“I am confident that we have the customer proposition, the brand, and the talent to make J.C. Penney successful over the long term,” Ellison added.

He is on the board of FedEx and is active with philanthropic efforts focused on inner-city school renovations, as well as mentoring programs aimed at developing inner-city youth. Ellison earned a business administration degree in marketing from the University of Memphis and an MBA from Emory University.

Ullman, who was actively involved in the search for his successor, said Ellison’s “experience and leadership are exactly what we need to accelerate the progress we have made over the last 18 months.”

Ellison has proven his ability to produce results by improving operations, building customer loyalty, and motivating his teams, Ullman said.

J.C. Penney chairman Tom Engibous expressed the board's “deep gratitude to Mike Ullman for all he has done, and will continue to do, for J.C. Penney.”

“After agreeing to return to the company during the most difficult period in its history, he has stabilized the business, improved performance across the board, and placed the company on a course for profitable growth,” Enginbous said.

Championship Fore Charities is a new golf event in the Fort Smith area benefiting eight local charities. The concept was developed by a few local community volunteers to bring together one event that would benefit many non-profits in the Fort Smith area.

The eight charities that will be benefiting from this event are: United Way, Girls Inc., Project Compassion, Optimist Clubs of Fort Smith and Crawford County, Donald W. Reynolds Cancer Support House, Crisis Intervention Center, Clothes Closet, and The Boys Shelter.

The event will take place Wednesday, Oct. 15 at Hardscrabble Country Club. There are two flights scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. and at 1 p.m. Lunch will be from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. provided by Arvest Bank. The field is almost full and the Championship Fore Charities committee says it can still take a few more teams.

With the local support from corporations and individuals in the community, Championship Fore Charities presented by Sykes has already raised over $70,000 and it is the plan of the committee to donate after expenses $6,000-$10,000 to each of the eight charities.

The main sponsors include: Sykes: Title Sponsor, Arvest Bank: Lunch sponsor, Mercy: Driving Range Sponsor, United Federal Credit Union: Towel sponsor, First National Bank: Beverage Cart Sponsor and Rheem as the Putting Green Sponsor. Teams and hole sponsorships round out the giving to the event and would not be a successful first year event without everyone’s support.

The Championship Fore Charities committee understood how hard it is to choose to between so many non-profits events, so the process was simplified to make it easy to support eight at once. Also, with the business owner in mind, having only one event keeps workers from having to attend multiple golf events throughout the year and spending that many more hours out of the office.

“The Championship Fore Charities. The event touching many lives. One day out of the office impacting important area charities.”

Link here for more information or call Beth Presley at 831-9038.

Centennial Bank announces two new promotions at its Fayetteville headquarters. Kevin Thompson was promoted to senior vice president of lending and Nathan Harris was promoted to vice president of commercial lending, according to Blake Holzhauer, Northwest Arkansas chief lending officer.  
 
“Kevin Thompson and Nathan Harris are tremendous assets to our lending team. Their commitment to providing outstanding lending services to the Northwest Arkansas community is unparalleled, and has helped them earn these much deserved promotions,” said Holzhauer.

Thompson has 12 years’ banking experience in commercial, consumer and mortgage lending. He is a graduate of Greenland High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in finance and administration from the University of Arkansas.
 
Thompson serves as vice president of the Emerging Leaders Section of Arkansas Bankers Association and as treasurer of Fayetteville Lions Club. He is an alumnus of Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Fayetteville. Thompson and his wife, Leigh, have two children, Bryce, 7, and Kayla, 5.
 
Harris has nine years banking experience in commercial lending, credit analysis, loan documentation and special assets. He is a native of Paragould and earned bachelor’s degree in finance and banking from Arkansas State University. He completed the Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University and is an alumnus of Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Fayetteville.

Arvest Bank said it will offer Apple Pay to its customers joining the ranks of Bank of America, Chase, Citi and Wells Fargo who have signed on to the mobile pay option unveiled by Apple on Sept. 9.

Apple Pay allows customers to load credit and debit cards from participating banks into an iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus, then simply hold the device near a contactless reader.

According to Apple, there are approximately 220,000 locations with contactless readers in the U.S. Partnering retailers include Subway, McDonalds, Petco, Walgreens, Staples and Whole Foods, among others. Customers also can use Apple Pay to make purchases online through online retailers with apps that integrate Apple Pay, such as Target, Starbucks, MLB.com and Open Table. Additional retailers are expected to begin accepting Apple Pay payments in the near future.

“Arvest Bank is excited to partner with Apple to offer this service to our customers,” said Jason Kincy, director of marketing for Arvest Bank. “We embrace mobile technology that provides added convenience for our customers, and Apple Pay will give them a quick, easy way to make everyday purchases using a mobile device. With this agreement in place, we are working on integrating this new payment method into our processing and we anticipate making it available to our customers in the near future.”

Apple’s newly introduced iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus have Near Field Communication (NFC) chips that allow the device to communicate with other devices within a range of about one inch. They are currently the only iPhones able to make in-store “tap and pay” purchases.

Once cards are uploaded into the iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus, Apple will verify the card with the customer’s bank for security and validity. A virtual “token” link between that card and that specific phone is stored in the Passbook app. The “token” number will not work on any other device or phone.

Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe made the following appointments or reappointments to state boards and commissions.

Dr. David Beasley, Jonesboro, to the State Board of Licensure for Professional Engineers and Professional Surveyors. Appointment expires July 1, 2016. Replaces Sherman Smith.

Jonathan Bibb, Sheridan, to the Arkansas Independent Living Council. Appointee serves at the will of the governor. Replaces Randy Laverty.

Bill Bosley, Benton, to the Arkansas Fair Housing Commission. Appointment expires Feb. 1, 2016. Replaces Todd Wilcox.

Dr. Michael Buffington, Fayetteville, to the Arkansas State Board of Acupuncture and Related Techniques. Appointment expires July 31, 2017. Replaces Dr. Jonathan Norcross.

Dr. Charmaine Caldwell, Arkadelphia, to the Arkansas Board of Examiners in Counseling. Appointment expires Dec. 1, 2016. Replaces Dr. Daniel Kissinger.

Emily Jordan Cox, Little Rock, to the Pulaski Technical College Board of Trustees. Appointment expires July 1, 2021. Replaces John Suskie, Sr.

Terry Dabbs, Stuttgart, reappointed to the Arkansas Wheat Promotion Board and the State Plant Board. Appointments expire June 30, 2016, and March 17, 2015, respectively.

Dr. Bill Dill III, Fayetteville, to the Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners. Appointment expires Sept. 1, 2019. Replaces Dr. George Martin, Sr.

Cindy Hale, DeQueen, to the Arkansas Arts Advisory Council. Appointment expires June 30, 2016. Replaces Anne Douglas.

David Hargrave, Lowell, reappointed to the Residential Building Contractors Committee. Appointment expires Oct. 1, 2017.

Sharon Hawkins, Little Rock, to the Arkansas Geographic Information Systems Board. Appointment expires Aug. 1, 2018. Replaces Jonathan Sweeney.

Kenneth Johnson, Pine Bluff, to the Southeast Arkansas College Board of Trustees. Appointment expires July 1, 2018. Replaces Kenneth Baim.

Rhonda Kimble, Little Rock, reappointed to the Arkansas Housing Trust Fund Advisory Committee. Appointment expires Oct. 12, 2018.

Willie McGhee, El Dorado, reappointed to the Minority Health Commission. Appointment expires Jan. 31, 2016.

Dr. James E. Moore, Hampton, to the Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners. Appointment expires Sept. 1, 2019. Replaces David Walker, Sr.

Dr. Matthew Nix, Texarkana, to the Arkansas Early Childhood Commission. Appointment expires July 1, 2017. Replaces Dr. Haley Vo.

Frankie Penn, Pocahontas, to the Residential Building Contractors Committee. Appointment expires Oct. 1, 2017. Replaces James Woods.

Roger Pohlner, Fisher, reappointed to the Arkansas Rice Research and Promotion Board. Appointment expires June 30, 2016.

Rebecca Rains, Little Rock, to the Keep Arkansas Beautiful Commission. Appointment expires Jan. 14, 2018. Replaces Georgette Garner.

Harvey Joe Sanner, Des Arc, reappointed to the Arkansas Waterways Commission. Appointment expires Jan. 14, 2019.

Dr. Victoria Seaton, Fayetteville, to the Criminal Detention Facility Review Committee, Judicial District #4. Appointment expires Jan. 14, 2016. Replaces Cindy Thornberry.

Ellen Sullivan, North Little Rock, to the Prescriptive Authority Advisory Committee. Appointment expires Feb. 1, 2017. This is a new position.

William "Grant" Tennille, Little Rock, to the Arkansas Geographic Information Systems Board. Appointment expires Aug. 1, 2018. Replaces Bekki White.

Gary Wiederkehr, Altus, reappointed to the Wine Producers Council. Appointment expires March 1, 2017.

Dave Wilson, Pocahontas, to the Arkansas Agriculture Board. Appointment expires Aug. 15, 2018. Replaces Charles Rodgers.

Recent John Brown University alumnus Marcel Guadrón received the Grand Prize for Short Film for his film, “Undercover,” at the South Central Broadcasting Society’s regional conference.
 
Developed as Guadrón’s senior cinema project at JBU, the 17-minute film is about an inexperienced secret agent who seizes the opportunity to prove herself by going undercover to stop an attack on an ambassador’s son. “Undercover” was also chosen as an official selection of the Little Rock Film Festival held in May.
 
“Marcel’s pursuit of knowledge and skill in the field of Digital Cinema is only trumped by the energy expended in his outflow of work—an ethic that was demonstrated in and out of class. This award is recognition of his good work and validation of what we are trying to do here at JBU,” said Steve Snediker, assistant professor of visual art and digital cinema.
 
Several other JBU students won awards at the conference. Alumnae Amy Perry received a finalist honor in the television talent category for her work on JBU’s student news program, “EagleBreak TV.” Sophomore Arline Mejia received an honorable mention for her television project, “Nightmare,” and junior Walter Medrano received an honorable mention for his short video “The Dichotomy of Life.”
 
John Brown University is a private Christian university and is based in Siloam Springs. JBU enrolls more than 2,800 students from 42 states and 40 countries in its traditional undergraduate, graduate, degree completion and concurrent education programs.

Home Bancshares, parent company of Centennial Bank, reported a third quarter profit of $27.4 million, or 41 cents diluted earnings per share. One year ago, the Conway-based financial institution reported $18.4 million in earnings, or 33 cents diluted earnings per share.

Loan growth and acquisitions drove the positive news. In July, Home Bancshares completed its buyout and merger with Florida-based Traditions Bank.

“I am eager to report the company has achieved $208.3 million in organic non-covered loan growth since the second quarter 2014,” said Home Bancshares Chairman John Allison. “At this point, we know there is still an ongoing need for organic loan growth and are diligently pursuing the opportunities set before us. Additionally, on Sept. 26, 2014, we completed the systems conversion of Traditions and now can speed up the process of improving the financial metrics to maximize returns to our shareholders.”

Financial highlights for the quarter included:
Total non-covered loans were $4.58 billion at Sept. 30, 2014 compared to $4.19 billion at Dec. 31, 2013.

Total deposits were $5.28 billion at Sept. 30, 2014 compared to $5.39 billion at Dec. 31, 2013.

Total assets were $7.20 billion at Sept. 30, 2014 compared to $6.81 billion at Dec. 31, 2013.

Net interest income for the third quarter of 2014 increased 69.6% to $78.6 million from $46.4 million during the third quarter of 2013.

The company reported $10.8 million of non-interest income for the third quarter of 2014, compared to $9.3 million for the third quarter of 2013.

Home Bancshare also announced this week that it signed an agreement with Apple to offer Centennial Bank customers the new Apple Pay mobile wallet payment service. Apple Pay allows customers to load credit and debit cards from participating banks into an iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus, then simply hold the device near a contactless reader. According to Apple, there are approximately 220,000 locations with contactless readers in the U.S.

After 27 years of affiliation with the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith and the university’s earlier iterations, the Leadership Fort Smith Program will operate as a program of the Fort Smith Regional Chamber of Commerce beginning June 30, 2015.

The Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, University of Arkansas Fort Smith, the Leadership Fort Smith Advisory Board, and the Leadership Fort Smith Alumni Association “are all in agreement that this transfer will be a positive change for the program,” according to a statement from the chamber.

The transition will begin after the 2014-2015 class graduates.

“We’re fortunate to have strong leaders in Fort Smith and many, if not all, have participated in Leadership Fort Smith at some point in their careers,” Tim Allen, Chamber President/CEO, said in the statement. “We couldn’t think of a more fitting home for the program than the Chamber. We are proud that the University, the LFS Board of Advisors, and the LFS Alumni Association Board have entrusted us with this remarkable community program. We will be ready to hit the ground running, training the future leaders of our community.”

The LFS Program’s stated purpose is “… to provide a program that will build a competent leadership pool for the Greater Fort Smith Region, motivate emerging and existing leaders, and develop the participants for community leadership and decision-making by exposing them to the realities, opportunities, and problems in our metropolitan area.”

UAFS Chancellor Dr. Paul Beran said the move will “enrich the program.”

“I am proud of the long and productive association of UAFS and Leadership Fort Smith. It’s a history that goes back to 1986. The LFS move mirrors the placement of community leadership around the country and also reflects the growing significance of economic development, regional issues, and quality of place on overall community success and achievement. This emphasis is better and more appropriately addressed by the Chamber,” Beran said in the statement.

The Fort Smith Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee received its first draft of the final proposed plan Thursday (Oct. 17) that will eventually be submitted to the Fort Smith Board of Directors for approval later this year.

The plan is more of a road map than a hard set of policies and initiatives for the city to undertake, said Committee Co-Chair John Cooley, but focuses on a few key areas.

"It certainly focuses on economic development and natural resources and transportation and infrastructure and all those things that, I think, make perfect sense in our world," he said, adding that the plan would only be as successful as the city and community groups working to implement the goals of the plan.

While much of the plan focuses on economic development and detailed planning for future growth of the city, including downtown development, an area missing from the plan is a strategy for dealing with the homeless population.

Committee member Mitch Minnick said "for the rest of the plan (to work), we must address the homeless."

Cooley said the group would spend the weekend reviewing the nearly 200 page draft document before a planned 11:30 a.m. Monday meeting with consultants from WRT, the consulting group assembling the comprehensive plan update for the city of Fort Smith.

Between Thursday and Monday's meeting, committee members will identify areas they would like to see changed or areas for inclusion of previously omitted information.

A final community open house is also scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 21 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Riverfront Pavilion. At this event, the community will be able to review details of the plan and provide feedback before the draft is revised and presented to the Board of Directors for final approval, which could happen as early as November.

At a meeting of the Fort Smith Port Authority Thursday (Oct. 17), Ports of Fort Smith and Van Buren operator Marty Shell updated authority members on an application for grant money to build a new storage building at the Fort Smith port. This would be the first new building at the port since 1980, he said.

Shell, also the owner of Five Rivers Distribution in Van Buren, said he and Sen. Jake Files, R-Fort Smith, would be traveling to Little Rock Nov. 6 to make an in-person appeal for the more than $200,000 in grant monies up for grabs from the Arkansas Waterways Commission.

The Fort Smith port is competing against Camden, Osceola, and Pine Bluff for the funds.

"Worst case scenario we come back with zero," Shell said. "Best case scenario, we come back with the full amount."

He said he does not expect the grant to be split between the cities, but he could not rule out such a result.

If the money is granted, Shell said it would need to be spent in a year. During that year, Shell said the port would approach other outside groups for additional funding to complete the project, which he said would cost well more than the $200,000 grant.

Since Shell took over operations of the Fort Smith port in 2008, freight tonnage has increased from 32,000 tons per year to more than 100,000 tons, he said.

"We need this money to continue operations if we want to generate revenues for the city and the public," he said. "If we want to create jobs in the area, we need this to be able to do that."

Darden Restaurants has named Bill Simon, former CEO of Walmart U.S., to its board of directors.

Simon is no stranger to the restaurant business. He spent more than a year as senior vice president of global business development for Brinker International before moving to Wal-Mart Stores. He also served on the Darden board for two years but chose not to seek re-election in 2013.


Darden, the parent of Olive Garden and Longhorn Steakhouse, is a company in transition with Gene Lee recently named as interim CEO following the retirement of Clarence Otis.


Last week, the activist Starboard Value L.P. won a proxy contest for all 12 seats on Darden’s board of directors. That kind of turnover, coupled with the fact that Darden is looking for a new CEO, has already led to concerns about uncertainty surrounding the company.



Walmex CEO Scot Rank, who has overseen Wal-Mart’s Mexican business unit for five years, will step down from that role at the end of this year. Rank will transition to vice-chairman of Wal-Mex effective Jan. 1, 2015.

Rank is not believed to be directly implicated in the ongoing bribery investigation and alleged violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.


David Cheesewright, CEO of Walmart International, said plans for the Mexican business include a rejuvenation as the growth in the market has slowed in recent years. A successor for Rank has not yet been named.

The Northwest Arkansas Council and The ARK Challenge on Monday (Oct. 20) were recognized with a top award given out by the world’s largest professional organization for economic development practitioners.

An Excellence in Economic Development Silver Award for Entrepreneurship was presented to the Northwest Arkansas Council and The ARK Challenge at the International Economic Development Council’s annual conference in Fort Worth, Texas.

“When we started focusing on entrepreneurs about three years ago, one of our primary objectives was to create a more robust entrepreneurial ecosystem for Northwest Arkansas,” said Mike Harvey, chief operating officer for the Northwest Arkansas Council, a private nonprofit organization that works to improve economic opportunity and quality of life in the region. “This validates some of the progress we’ve made. It’s a special recognition.”

The entrepreneurship award goes to programs, policies, or initiatives that nurture and support individuals or emerging small businesses to develop their ideas, products, and/or services into viable, competitive businesses.

“Economic development efforts have long been a keystone in the quest to bolster the economy and improve quality of life in every locality across the country,” said Bill Sproull, the International Economic Development Council’s chair and president and CEO of the Richardson (Texas) Chamber of Commerce. “As the nation continues to tackle challenges in the midst of global uncertainty, these efforts have taken on an even greater significance. With this award, we laud trendsetting organizations like the Northwest Arkansas Council for leading the charge.”

The Northwest Arkansas Council and The ARK Challenge began collaborating on projects to support entrepreneurs in early 2012. The Council works to support regional economic development and much of its attention goes toward assisting startups. The ARK Challenge is a mentorship-driven accelerator program for technology startups. It holds weeks-long boot camps to assist startups in the development of their companies and it’s a full member of the Global Accelerator Network.

IEDC’s Excellence in Economic Development Awards recognize the world’s best economic development programs and partnerships, marketing materials, and the year’s most influential leaders. The awards honor organizations and individuals for their efforts in creating positive change in urban, suburban and rural communities.

BancorpSouth posted gains in key revenue categories but non-diluted earnings of 32 cents per share narrowly missed the consensus analyst estimate of 33 cents per share.

Tupelo, Miss.-based BancorpSouth has operations in the Northwest Arkansas and Fort Smith and Fort Smith areas.

The bank holding company reported quarterly net operating income of $30.8 million, with a pre-tax hit of $3.1 million resulting from “anti-money laundering” compliance issues.

Net interest revenue was $105.6 million for the third quarter of 2014, up 5.4% from $100.2 million for the third quarter of 2013 and up of 2.5% from $103.1 million for the second quarter of 2014. Noninterest revenue was $69.3 million for the third quarter of 2014, compared with $62.5 million for the third quarter of 2013 and $69.8 million for the second quarter of 2014. 

For the first nine months of 2014, the bank reported net income of $88.1 million, or 92 cents per diluted share, compared to $66.4 million, or 70 cents per diluted share, for the same period in 2013.

Helping drive revenue was the bank’s loan activity. The bank noted in its third quarter earnings statement that net loan growth totaled $198.9 million, up 8.5% on an annualized basis. It marked the sixth consecutive quarter of net loan growth.

The bank is also reporting that bad loan provisions and real estate holdings continue to move in the right direction. Non-performing loans and leases declined $4.7 million, or 6.4%, compared to the second quarter of 2014, while non-performing assets fell $17.3 million, or 13.4%, over the same period.

Other real estate owned fell $12.6 million to $42.7 million during the third quarter of 2014 from $55.3 million at June 30, 2014. Sales of real estate owned during the third quarter of 2014 resulted in a net loss of $3.3 million compared to a net loss of $1.1 million for the second quarter of 2014. At Sept. 30, 2014, other real estate owned was carried at 39.8% of the aggregate loan balances at the time of foreclosure, compared with 44.2% at June 30, 2014.

BancorpSouth shares (NYSE: BXS) closed Monday (Oct. 20) closed at $20.10, down 1 penny. During the past 52 weeks the share price has ranged from a $26.24 high to a $19.22 low.

The Crawford County Quorum Court on Monday (Oct. 20) approved appropriation reallocation requests for the Election Commission and the assessor's office.

The Election Commission's original request for $62,600 was revised to $40,000 after Budget Committee Chair Mary Jan Blount said the general fund would not have the necessary funds to fulfill the request.

Election Commissioner Bill Taylor said $40,000 would get the commission through November's general election, but he said it was possible a runoff would be necessary and additional funding would be requested.

When the 2014 budget was approved, the Quorum Court had taken more than $60,000 in expected revenues for the commission and directed it to the general fund in order to make the budget balance for the year, which lead to the commission's request Monday for the additional funds in order to cover costs with the election. Early voting for the general election began Monday.

County Judge John Hall said a similar situation would not occur with the upcoming 2015 budget due to problems the budgeting maneuver caused this year.

The appropriations ordinance for the assessor's office would move $6,892 to Assessor Ronnie Dale's office to cover a GIS surveying contract. He said the survey had already found properties that will contribute an additional $51,000 in new tax revenues next year and could add even more once all surveys are complete.

Budget meetings for the 2015 budget were also announced Monday for the Crawford County Quorum Court. The meetings are slated for Oct. 27 and 30 and Nov. 6 and 10. All meetings will take place at 6 p.m. at the Circuit Courtroom #2, 220 South 4th Street in Van Buren.

First National Bank of NWA – formerly First National Bank of Rogers –  has announced it has received regulatory approval to build a branch at 402 SW A. Street in Bentonville,  a site the bank acquired earlier this summer.

The anticipated construction start date will be in the first quarter of 2015.

“As promised, FNBNWA continues to show a commitment to our customers and community by providing more convenience and expanded services within our region.  We are also very excited to create more jobs and do our part to help our local economy,” Rob Husong, regional president of First National Bank of NWA, said in a statement. “We look forward to building something in the Arts District that the residents of Bentonville will be proud of by constructing a building that will embody the direction and scope of the already changing downtown Bentonville area.”

First National Bank of NWA is a division of the First National Bank of Fort Smith, which was chartered in 1872. The company provides its Northwest Arkansas customers with four branches, including Rogers (Pinnacle), Rogers (Dixieland), Lowell and Centerton, with Bentonville slated to open in 2015 in addition to 13 branches located in the Fort Smith metro area.

Faculty and students at John Brown University are developing a drinking water disinfection system for rural Guatemala with the help of an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grant of $14,520.

The grant, part of the EPA's People, Prosperity and Planet (P3) program will fund the research and development of a scalable, modular and affordable solar-powered system that can purify the water for the 500 people living in the department of Escuintla in southern Guatemala.

Most of the freshwater in Escuintla is unfit for human consumption due to volcanic chemicals, industrial waste, viruses and bacteria fromsurrounding areas.

"The tobacco industry, a leading source of water pollution, is large in this area," said Dr. Ted Song, JBU assistant professor of engineering and project manager. "Clean water is very limited and most people cannot afford bottled water. Escuintla is a coastal area and that, combined with the higher temperatures, make it an ideal place to use solar thermal pasteurization."

The system design is the senior project for engineering majors Ernesto Lopez Chan, Ethiopia Haileyesus, Cassidy Green and Ishant Desai. They will spend the academic year researching and developing their design.

"Working on this project with an EPA grant is such a great opportunity that God has given me," said Haileyesus. "I have the privilege of collaborating with like-minded people as one team to pursue the goal of providing pure water to those who lack this common necessity."

In the spring the team will travel to Washington, D.C. and present their proposal to a panel of experts at the National Sustainable Design Expo on the National Mall along with 41 other teams from U.S. colleges.

Approximately six teams will be chosen to receive phase 2 funding of up to $75,000 to further develop their design and bring it to the marketplace.

Arvest Mortgage Company announced Tuesday (Oct. 21) that it originated more than $1 billion in mortgage loans – both refinance and purchase money loans – through Sept. 30, 2014. Arvest said it had closed a total of 6,853 loans with combined loan value of $1,012,205,070 by Sept. 30 this year, marking the 12th consecutive year Arvest has reached this milestone.

Continuing the trend of the last two years, refinance loans declined while purchase money loans grew as a percentage of total mortgage loan volume. The mix between purchase money and refinance loans at Arvest has inverted since 2012.

This year new purchase loans accounted for 68% of the mortgage originations, while refinance applications made up 32% of the total volume volume. Conversely, just two years ago in 2012 new purchase were 33% of the market, compared to 67% being refinance applications.

“While the entire industry knew that refinances would continue to decline, we have been very pleased that our purchase money loans have remained strong and outpaced national projections. This indicates that consumers in our area are continuing to buy new homes and looking for local lenders to help them,” said Steven Plaisance, president and chief operating officer of Arvest Mortgage Company.

The overall volume and dollar value of purchase money loans made at Arvest have declined slightly from the same period a year ago, but this decline is less than the drop forecasted in September by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

As of Sept. 30, Arvest has made 4,591 purchase money loans with total loan value of $686,165,920. That compared to 5,006 new purchase loans worth $740,573,626 during the same period last year. Total values declined 8.3%, while volume lagged 7.3% year-over-year. The Mortgage Bankers Association forecasted a 13% decline in purchase money loan values nationally in 2014 compared to 2013.

Arvest said the average loan value it made this year increased from $147,937 to $149,459 over the same period last year, reflecting modest price improvement in the real estate market.