Things to Come: Waldron's woes give a glimpse into the future for many cities, towns

The small city of Waldron, Ark., about 40 miles south of Fort Smith, is facing a serious financial challenge.
An unfortunately familiar one.
The Scott County seat has about 3,600 residents. And one of the main employers and sources of tax revenue for the city has been the giant retailer Walmart.
But things have changed. The store recently shut down after 35 years. City officials say sales tax revenue from Walmart was a big factor in providing essential services such as public works and fire and police protection. The store's closing will leave a big hole in the budget.
And while other retailers still operate in Waldron, they can't make up for the lost jobs. Waldron's situation shows the danger so many cities and towns face when they rely on one major business or industry to provide jobs and tax revenue.
We have seen it in the Midwest and Northern "rust belts." A steel mill closes. A car factory is idled. A coal mine cuts jobs. And the city suffers.
We see it here. Texarkana, Ark., is worried about the loss in revenue since beer and wine have been legalized on the Texas side. And there is concern over the future should Bowie County voters ever give the OK to hard liquor sales.
We see it on both sides of the state line whenever Red River Army Deport is threatened by BRAC. Whenever there are rumblings Cooper Tire may reduce operations or even close completely and move elsewhere. So we scramble to provide tax breaks and concessions and whatever else we can do to prevent disaster and keep those good-paying jobs.
The solution, of course, is a much broader economic base. More businesses, more industry. We all know that. The problem is how to make it happen.
We know both cities and the Chamber of Commerce think about this a lot. They do their best to attract companies to locate here. But there is a lot of competition out there. A lot of cities that want the jobs and the economic boost.
We hate to sound pessimistic, but unless this region becomes proactive in recruiting big businesses and industry, things could get worse. Mechanization means fewer factory workers are needed. Outsourcing to countries where wages are lower will continue. Online sales play a much bigger role in our lives. And consolidation means fewer but much larger companies. More and more municipalities will be chasing fewer and fewer opportunities. And more and more will also face disaster when the major employer and taxpayer decides to pull up stakes.
There was time before giant big box stores, before importing was the exception rather than the rule and before banks were "too big to fail." Texarkana boomed back then as did many other towns and cities. Now things are much bigger, much more efficient, much more modern. Everything is fast and getting faster. We have more choices as consumers. Some would say life is much better these days and in some ways they are right.
But we have lost a lot as well. Many communities have been devastated, gutted by these changes. But we can't turn back the clock and the bigger companies get the less likely they are to put what's best for America's people, cities and towns ahead of making as much profit as they can.
Waldron is just the latest casualty. There will be many, many more.

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