Hard Times for the Country Club Crowd

The true leading economic indicator for Northwest Arkansas, how many country clubs have been served with Business Closure Notices this week, is at Two. The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration frowns when businesses fail or refuse to remit sales taxes for the third time.

Declared tax deadbeats by state officials this week were the Golf Club at Dawn Hills, 13890 Turnberry Lane, Siloam Springs, and the Valley View Sportsman Club, 11520 Clubhouse Parkway, Farmington. What they did with the sales taxes they collected from customers is not known, but that could be one explanation why recent sales tax revenues are down in Benton and Washington counties.

Maybe these economically distressed golf courses could be declared "blighted" areas now and would qualify for million dollar TIF Districts taken from public school revenue and other corporate welfare from the paychecks of working families who do pay their taxes. I expect the Chamber of Cowbirds to call for new "business friendly" incentives to support "economic development," which must have nice golf courses and country clubs to do business deals.