What would it take to get you to move to Arkansas?
With all due respect to natives of "The Natural State," I have to admit that question has never crossed my mind. I've heard that the state has lots of natural beauty, so I might want to take a bike trip there. But I haven't ever thought of residing there.
Could I change my mind? The folks at Northwest Arkansas Council seems to think so. Or, at least they think they can entice city slickers like me.
To that end, as part of their Life Works Here Initiative, the Council is offering $10,000 and a free bicycle in the hopes of luring new residents to their part of the world. If you don't want the bike, you can take a membership to the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art or some other cultural institution in the area.
Because many are working from home--and, for some, that home can be anywhere, they "are re-evaluating their priorities and their lifestyle," says Council president and CEO Nelson Peacock. "They are reconsidering where they are living and what they are prioritizing.
Here's another incentive: the area has 162 miles of paved paths and 322 miles of mountain biking trails. You can choose whether you want a "street" or mountain bike for your premium.
If you're ready to say "goodbye, city life," you can fill out an application on the Initiative's website.
I misread the headline and wondered why have a $10,000 bike, that is just too much, then again almost everyone spends just too little on their bikes...
ReplyDeleteSo, is $10,000 and a dodgy bike offer enough to convince any sane person to move to a state which votes the way it does?
Hmm. Arkansas is offering a bribe to get people to move there?
ReplyDeleteDo you think maybe if enough folks take up that offer, Arkansas could turn blue?
Might be worth a shot, yeah?
Voyage and Mike— I had the same thoughts as each of you. On one hand, while NW Arkansas might be beautiful, I thought I wouldn’t fit in with the culture of the place. (Wow! I can’t believe I just repeated a phrase used by someone who turned me down for a job for which I was far more qualified than the person who got it!) But, perhaps, a bunch of us could band together for an “invasion.”
ReplyDeleteNearly twice as many voted for trump than Biden in Arkansas in the 2020 election. Although my cultural environment is far from perfect where I currently live, no monetary offer would entice me to live in a state with such obvious differences in values.
ReplyDeleteRob—It’s hard to believe that Bill Clinton was one the governor of the state. Interestingly, Arkansas was one of the last holdouts against the “red tide” that engulfed the South—possibly because, in terms of wealth, Arkansas made Mississippi seem like Connecticut.
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