Two Oklahoma countiesmay be next statistic for Northwest Arkansas

By John Hacker

Globe Staff Writer

The Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers Metropolitan Statistical Area doubled in size when McDonald County, Mo., and Madison County, Ark., were added to Benton and Washington counties in Northwest Arkansas by the federal Office of Management and Budget last year.

And, one of the fastest-growing statistical areas could easily have tripled in size had just a few more residents of Delaware and Adair counties in Oklahoma traveled to work in Northwest Arkansas.

Only a few percentage points in the number of people who commute from Oklahoma to Arkansas kept that from happening in 2003. Business leaders believe it will become a certainty after the 2010 census.

Those who live and work in Delaware County are divided on whether they want to become a statistic in Northwest Arkansas' back yard.

"Northwest Arkansas is like a whole other world," said Tom Sanders, owner of Sanco Lumber in Grove, Okla., and president of the Grove Area Chamber of Commerce.

Sanders said Delaware County should concentrate on creating its own identity and touting the benefits of its location on Grand Lake to attract new businesses and residents.

"It's booming over there (in Arkansas), mainly because of Wal-Mart, but most of that growth stays out of Delaware County," Sanders said.

"We've been working for years to develop a green area in conjunction with the other counties around the lakes. I think we'd want to have our own identity and promote this area around the lakes. We'd want to get identified as our own statistical area, not some other area."

Johnny Earp, vice president of Grand Savings Bank in Jay, Okla., and president of the Jay Chamber of Commerce, said he relishes the idea of being linked to the economic engine in Arkansas.

"The property values in Benton County are growing, and people are selling over there and looking for less expensive property in Delaware County, and that drives up property values here," Earp said. "That's good for the schools and business.

"I think Northwest Arkansas will keep growing, and eventually we'll become a bedroom community to that area. I'm glad to see every bit of the growth."

Jeff Wallace, director of the Oklahoma State Data Center, said numbers from the 2000 census showed that 17.4 percent of the workers living in Delaware County drove to Northwest Arkansas to work. In Adair County, south of Delaware County, the figure was 23 percent.