The Hot Springs Metro Partnership hosted its Annual Meeting and Economic Development Awards ceremony, bringing together local leaders, business owners, and community members to celebrate a year of remarkable achievements and recognize outstanding contributions to the economic growth of the Hot Springs area.
The event, held at the National Park College Student Commons building, showcased the collective efforts of the community in driving economic progress and fostering innovation. Attendees were eager to celebrate the past year's achievements and chart a course for continued prosperity. 

After all the guests arrived, reflections of the past year were made by Scott Dews, the HSMP 2023 Chairman, Gary Troutman, the HSMP President/CEO, and Cole McCaskill, the HSMP VP of Economic Development.  

“As I reflect on 2023 for the Hot Springs Metro Partnership, I am proud of what we accomplished as an organization.  We achieved some goals we set for ourselves, and we made significant progress in other areas we identified as crucial for our community.  In recent years, our investors and community stakeholders have expressed the need for workforce development in our community, and last year our professional staff along with many community members began to address that need in a big way,” Dews said.  

After Dews presented an update on the Majestic Site project to the group, he welcomed Troutman to the stage to share a recap of 2023 accomplishments and events, and he detailed the year by topic or initiative.  

This included Workforce Development, Workforce Education, Broadband Expansion, Transportation, Business Development, and a mention of several local companies and individuals recognized for their 2023 accomplishments and received statewide awards.  

“I was particularly proud of our transformative breakthrough in Workforce Education this year, thanks in large part to the administrators and staff of our Garland County Schools, and their willingness to let us have a presence at each. We’ve now spoken to over 3,000 students about local career opportunities right here in Hot Springs and Garland County. We’ve positioned ourselves to be an ACT Work Ready Community, we’ve now had two very successful Draft Day events at Lake Hamilton, and we’ve been recognized nationally for our innovation in this area by receiving an unsolicited SHRM Foundation grant for our efforts,” Troutman said.  

Troutman opened his remarks at the college by congratulating NPC on their national championship in basketball, saying he thought that would be the hot topic of the day. But Mystik Dan’s remarkable Kentucky Derby win and the fact he is partially-owned by Hot Springs entrepreneurs Banks and Scott Hamby is just unbelievable, he said.  

Troutman then asked McCaskill to share his thoughts on the year’s economic progress. McCaskill’s main priority for the past multiple years has been to bring new life and business into Hot Springs, specifically in the downtown area.  

“In 2023, we cut the ribbon on the 200th new business to open since the Majestic fire and then more new businesses kept opening all year. In the last 10 years, we’ve now seen 222 new businesses open downtown, 164 commercial properties sold, and $165 million invested into redevelopment projects downtown. 2023 activity was near an all-time high and it’s not showing any signs of slowing down.” 

The highlight of the event was undoubtedly the presentation of the Economic Development Awards, which recognized individuals who have demonstrated exceptional dedication and innovation in their efforts to drive economic progress in the region. 

The awards given were the Historic Preservation Champion of the Year Award, the Downtown Trailblazer of the Year Award, the Trending Upward Award, which is not given out every year but only when unique circumstances identify a clear and deserving winner, the Economic Development Leadership Award, the Economic Force Award, and the Chairman’s Award.  

Among the recipients of this year's awards were: 

• The Historic Preservation Champion of the Year Award was presented to The Arlington Resort Hotel & Spa for their meticulous multimillion-dollar ongoing restoration of the hotel,  

• The Downtown Trailblazer of the Year Award was presented to Rusty Thompson for his transformative redevelopment of the entire 900 block of Central Avenue that brought in new businesses and vibrancy to the previously vacant area, 

• The Trending Upward Award was presented to Amanda Porter for her hours of work helping to plan Draft Day with 1400 high school students, 14 different schools and 57 businesses, 

• The Economic Development Leadership Award was presented to Hot Springs City Manager Bill Burrough for his tireless work over the past 13 years to pursue the rights to drinking water from Lake Ouachita that will provide the foundation of future growth and success for our community for generations to come, 

• The Economic Force Award was presented to Vulcan Pickleball for making Hot Springs the sport of pickleball’s headquarters by being one of the largest companies in the sport, and landing the $70 million contract to be the official ball of the PPA Pro Pickleball Tour and Major League Pickleball, 

• The HSMP Chairman chooses the Chairman’s Award, and Scott Dews selected everyone involved in the HSMP’s Workforce Development efforts this year including every business person who participated in a panel discussion at a school, all school superintendents and CTE coordinators, volunteers on the Chamber’s Workforce Committee, SHRM members, etc. to receive the award. Many in the room stood up to be recognized for their work and support over the past year.  

“2023 was a great year for the Hot Springs Metro Partnership, and even brighter days are ahead.  I am grateful for the opportunity to have served as chair of this organization at a time when so many great things are happening in our community.  It was truly an honor,” Dews said.  

2024 HSMP Chair Vince Signorelli then presented Dews a plaque for his year of service and showed his gratitude to Dews and other past HSMP chairs. Signorelli announced his vision for the present and future as making our community a “shining city on a hill,” and then proceeded to verbalize his passion for Hot Springs and Garland County. 

The Annual Meeting and Economic Development Awards ceremony served as a powerful reminder of the collective strength and resilience of the Hot Springs community, as well as a testament to the boundless potential for growth and prosperity in the years to come. 

For more information about the Hot Springs Metro Partnership and its ongoing efforts to promote economic development and growth in the region, visit https://www.hotspringsmetropartnership.com/ or contact Hannah Rohrer at 501-321-1700.