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A daily look at the most significant and interesting stories affecting Northwest Arkansas, written by local reporters.

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Nonprofit opens second attainable housing project

Development

The nonprofit behind the recently opened affordable Bentonville housing development that includes school employees just opened another housing project in Rogers.State of play: Excellerate Foundation&#x27;s new housing project, Walnut Commons, is a 60-unit apartment complex with one-, two- and three-bedroom units for people who make under 60% of the area median income, which is <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="roughly $64,000" data-vars-click-url="https://ami-lookup-tool.fanniemae.com/amilookuptool/" data-vars-content-id="f0ccd703-5cf6-4519-9e13-f2b618e2e5c0" data-vars-headline="Nonprofit opens second attainable housing project" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://ami-lookup-tool.fanniemae.com/amilookuptool/" target="_blank">roughly $64,000</a>, spokesperson Ali Johnson told Axios.<ul><li>The monthly rent for the apartments is $400-$900, Johnson said.</li></ul>

Haunted houses, pop-up bars and Halloween events in NWA

NWA has plenty of events, haunted experiences and places to get a spooky drink.

Things to Do

Halloween is fast approaching, and NWA has plenty of events, haunted experiences and places to get a spooky drink.Here are some of our picks.

Nonprofit launches maternal health data tool

The Maternal Resiliency Index is designed to help policy makers.

News

Bentonville-based Heartland Forward recently launched a beta version of the Maternal Resiliency Index, an interactive online tool.Why it matters: Policymakers can use the tool to examine maternal health statistics by county and estimate how policy changes could affect outcomes, Rachel Morrow, director of the Maternal and Child Health Center for Policy and Practice, told Axios.

Your ballot initiative guide

Arkansans will vote on four ballot initiatives this November.

Election

Arkansans will soon decide whether to add three amendments to the state&#x27;s constitution and whether to approve one statewide bond issue.Here&#x27;s a rundown of each one.

Crystal Bridges opens outdoor play area

The Ozark Discovery Canopy is not a traditional playground.

The Crystal Bridges campus has a new outdoor playscape for all ages: the Ozark Discovery Canopy.The big picture: The playscape opens on the heels of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art&#x27;s <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="major expansion" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/nw-arkansas/2026/06/01/crystal-bridges-unveils-major-museum-expansion" data-vars-content-id="1d42309b-ed28-4d4b-94ea-f73fa6c0f377" data-vars-headline="Crystal Bridges opens outdoor play area" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/nw-arkansas/2026/06/01/crystal-bridges-unveils-major-museum-expansion" target="_self">major expansion</a> this year.

Walton-backed STEM university breaks ground

It will be called the Bentonville Institute of Technology.

Education

Bentonville&#x27;s planned private STEM university broke ground Friday on land that was formerly home to the Walmart headquarters.Why it matters: The Bentonville Institute of Technology is a major investment for the future of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields and for development in the region.

What's in the $457 million Rogers bond issue

The city is asking voters to extend a 1% sales tax to afford a range of projects.

Rogers voters will decide in November whether to extend an <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="existing 1% sales tax to pay for a range of projects" data-vars-click-url="https://www.rogersar.gov/1601/2026-Bond-Issue" data-vars-content-id="14deb629-12a5-4206-8bff-6eef55ee5e5b" data-vars-headline="What&#x27;s in the $457 million Rogers bond issue" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.rogersar.gov/1601/2026-Bond-Issue" target="_blank">existing 1% sales tax to pay for a range of projects</a>.The big picture: The city is asking for a considerable amount on the front end to afford construction projects, street maintenance and equipment.

Attainable housing project opens in Bentonville

McAuley Place includes designated cottages for Bentonville Public Schools employees.

A development intended to offer affordable housing to Bentonville School District employees and others making under a certain income is open, with plans for the first residents to move in this week.Why it matters: The McAuley Place project serves as a blueprint for how housing can be offered to residents below market rate as Northwest Arkansas has seen <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="housing prices rise sharply" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/nw-arkansas/2026/01/20/housing-prices-jumped-nwa-series" data-vars-content-id="92719f4e-1501-4194-9b45-c143c996d149" data-vars-headline="Attainable housing project opens in Bentonville" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/nw-arkansas/2026/01/20/housing-prices-jumped-nwa-series" target="_self">housing prices rise sharply</a> in recent years.

The Agenda: AI policy, grants, construction

The Bentonville, Rogers and Springdale city councils meet tonight.

Your city councils have full agendas for tonight.<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Bentonville" data-vars-click-url="https://bentonvillear.portal.civicclerk.com/event/2101/files/agenda/9191" data-vars-content-id="793412ca-0502-4181-ab38-d56a33b10922" data-vars-headline="The Agenda: AI policy, grants, construction" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://bentonvillear.portal.civicclerk.com/event/2101/files/agenda/9191" target="_blank">Bentonville</a> will vote on:

Alice Walton plans Bentonville hospital and cancer center

The 120-acre campus will bring major specialty care services to Northwest Arkansas.

Health

Walmart heir Alice Walton announced Thursday that her planned Bentonville <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="health care campus" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/nw-arkansas/2025/02/19/alice-walton-foundation-walmart-land-purchase-health-care-campus" data-vars-content-id="1a5207b2-9eeb-46ca-adbe-41dc01122f8e" data-vars-headline="Alice Walton plans Bentonville hospital and cancer center" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/nw-arkansas/2025/02/19/alice-walton-foundation-walmart-land-purchase-health-care-campus" target="_self">health care campus</a> will include a hospital and a &quot;world-class&quot; cancer center.Why it matters: Walton&#x27;s vision is for the 120-acre AWSOM Whole Health Campus to be a game changer not only for Northwest Arkansas but for the state and the broader Heartland.

The Agenda: Fayetteville aquatic center location

Voters approved a bond issue to build an aquatic center.

The <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Fayetteville City Council" data-vars-click-url="https://fayettevillear.portal.civicclerk.com/event/1653/files/agenda/5478" data-vars-content-id="f0a0c150-1ad2-4c6d-bfd3-9dc8e43528e2" data-vars-headline="The Agenda: Fayetteville aquatic center location" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://fayettevillear.portal.civicclerk.com/event/1653/files/agenda/5478" target="_blank">Fayetteville City Council</a> meets tonight and plans to take up:🏊 Reserving up to $75,000 of the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="aquatics/recreation center" data-vars-click-url="https://www.fayetteville-ar.gov/4504/Aquatic-Recreation-Center" data-vars-content-id="f0a0c150-1ad2-4c6d-bfd3-9dc8e43528e2" data-vars-headline="The Agenda: Fayetteville aquatic center location" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.fayetteville-ar.gov/4504/Aquatic-Recreation-Center" target="_blank">aquatics/recreation center</a> bonds for further site evaluation and study related to the location of the planned aquatics/recreation center.

XNA plans expansion to add new gates

The concourse's gates will accommodate larger planes that XNA is increasingly seeing.

Northwest Arkansas National Airport plans to start construction this fall on a new concourse that will add a net total of five gates.Why it matters: The major expansion of the formerly regional airport is perhaps the clearest indicator of how busy XNA is.<ul><li>It <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="surpassed Little Rock&#x27;s enplanements" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/nw-arkansas/2026/01/30/xna-flies-past-little-rock-first-time" data-vars-content-id="0009b9d1-c80a-4645-95bf-3a461be3863c" data-vars-headline="XNA plans expansion to add new gates" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/nw-arkansas/2026/01/30/xna-flies-past-little-rock-first-time" target="_self">surpassed Little Rock&#x27;s enplanements</a> in 2025 and had its <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="highest-ever number of enplanements" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/nw-arkansas/2026/08/20/xna-busiest-month-ever" data-vars-content-id="0009b9d1-c80a-4645-95bf-3a461be3863c" data-vars-headline="XNA plans expansion to add new gates" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/nw-arkansas/2026/08/20/xna-busiest-month-ever" target="_self">highest-ever number of enplanements</a> in a single month in July. Enplanements are the number of times passengers fly out of the airport.</li></ul>

NWA needs $1.5 billion in wastewater investment

The council and the state of Arkansas began the regional wastewater study last year and expect to release its findings this fall.

Northwest Arkansas will need $1.5 billion in additional wastewater-plant investment to support future growth, Northwest Arkansas Council president and CEO Nelson Peacock said Wednesday.Why it matters: The region has enough wastewater capacity for now, &quot;but it&#x27;s in the wrong places,&quot; Peacock said. That mismatch could shape where Northwest Arkansas can add housing and commercial development.

Development 🏗️

Crystal Bridges opens outdoor play area

Nonprofit opens second attainable housing project

Walton-backed STEM university breaks ground

What's in the $457 million Rogers bond issue

Attainable housing project opens in Bentonville