new 2040 master plan, I brought it to everybody’s attention that we were just trying to get to the 20th century,” admits City Inspector David Nelson, highlighting the town’s former challenges. “They said, but it’s the 21st century and I said I know, and that’s how far behind we are.” Today, that narrative is rapidly changing as the town charges “beyond the 21st century,” as Nelson explains. Spearheading this transformation are Community Developer Kelli Souter and Nelson himself, a collaborative duo whose approach ensures a unified vision for progress. Souter describes the community as having “true Southern charm with a lot of growth and opportunity available.” Through a strategic 2040 Master Plan, critical infrastructure upgrades, and a proactively supportive business climate, Magnolia is creating a compelling environment for investment and residential growth, planting the seeds for a prosperous new chapter. A MASTER PLAN BUILT FOR TOMORROW The catalyst for Magnolia’s current momentum is its strategic 2040 Master Plan, a comprehensive effort to modernize the city’s foundational framework.The need was clear, the city was operating on a severely outdated code. “We were working off of a code that was 2003 when we started the new development plan,” Nelson explains. While the plan’s rollout hit a snag with COVID, the city has since made significant strides. This new blueprint guides development across two distinct, purposeful corridors. The first is the established downtown square, which defies the trend of dying rural main streets. “We have a very established downtown, unlike a lot of other small towns in rural America where their downtown is dying,” Nelson states. Efforts are now focused on enhancing this asset by planting trees and attracting new businesses to a few vacant buildings, bolstered by the vibrant success of anchor establishments like Lefty’s. “So what we’re trying to do moving forward is just bring back the downtown feel,” he adds. 125 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 06, ISSUE 11 MAGNOLIA, AR
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