State Group to Promote Military Bases for Economic Development

Gov. Asa Hutchinson announces the formation of the Governor's Military Affairs Committee at Camp Robinson.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Monday announced the formation of the Governor’s Military Affairs Committee, which is charged with supporting and promoting the state’s military installations for use in economic development projects.

The committee will seek to accomplish both short- and long-term economic development objectives for military installations in the state. Its members will represent both the public and private sectors.

Brad Hegeman, president of Nabholz Construction Services, will chair the committee. He has served with the Arkansas National Guard Association and the Little Rock Air Force Base Community Council. Other members of the steering committee are:

• Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin;
• Maj. Gen. (Ret) William Wofford, Adjutant General’s representative for the Arkansas National Guard;
• Larry Wilson, LRAFB Community Council;
• Lou Ann Nisbett, Economic Development Alliance of Jefferson County;
• Tim Allen, president and CEO, Fort Smith Regional Chamber of Commerce;
• Jan Gattis Burd, vice president of commercial lending, First National Bank of Fort Smith;
• Mike Preston, executive director, Arkansas Economic Development Commission;
• Danny Games, AEDC deputy director of global business;
• Ken Griffin, military/veterans affairs liaison for Hutchinson.

Hutchinson, who made the announcement from the Arkansas National Guard home base of Camp Robinson, said the state will provide $400,000 to get the committee up and running and fund an economic analysis.

The committee’s objectives will include:

• Grow and protect the state’s military installations, utilization, and missions;
• Advocate at state and federal levels on behalf of our state and local economic development interests;
• Position Arkansas as a priority state in the national defense plan;
• Appoint a public-private partnership steering committee to accomplish short-term and organizational goals.

“The nation’s military presence in Arkansas through our bases and our defense contractors plays a vital role, not only in the defense of our country, but also in the economic stability of our state,” Hutchinson said in a news release. “We have several groups around the state who have an interest in seeing our military prosper, and this pro-active initiative will allow us to combine our strengths and pursue common objectives and opportunities. I’m proud of the steering committee we’ve assembled and challenge them with directing this initiative successfully.”

In addition, the AEDC has appointed Becky Rheinhardt as a senior manager to support military installations as one of the state’s targeted industry sectors.

“This is a great day for the state of Arkansas and I applaud Gov. Hutchinson for the vision and commitment to establish this organization,” Hegeman said. “This effort will provide the state with the focus and resources necessary to not only preserve our military installations but to make Arkansas the logical choice for future missions and growth opportunities.”