{"id":3739,"date":"2018-10-03T16:03:52","date_gmt":"2018-10-03T21:03:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/eagleeyemedia.org\/?p=3739"},"modified":"2019-12-11T23:07:05","modified_gmt":"2019-12-12T04:07:05","slug":"tearing-down-the-line","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eagleeyemedia.org\/?p=3739","title":{"rendered":"Tearing Down the Line"},"content":{"rendered":"

Do you have an uncontrollable desire to live next door to your biggest football rival and eventually make amends through governmental practices? If you do, I have the perfect place for you. Texarkana is widely known for its dividing state line between Arkansans and Texans. The rivalry goes so deep that patron lines for tickets to the annual Arkansas and Texas High football game begin two weeks in advance. This divide goes much deeper than just a friendly rivalry. The physical divider, State Line Boulevard, is our largest indicator of economic separation between the two states. Most people in town will tell you that the Arkansas side is the poor side of town; the bad side of town.<\/span><\/p>\n

The United States Census Bureau<\/a> says that there are 67,592 people living in Texarkana, with 37, 333 residents within the Texas side and about 30,259 in Arkansas. Could this be the reason for such a wide-spread difference in financial situations? There are more housing availabilities on the Texas side than that of Arkansas\u2019. However, the median household income is higher on the Arkansas side, while per capita income is lower. In addition to stark variation in housing conditions, the United States Census Bureau<\/a> statistics show that there is a variation in education levels across the state line. The Texas side has higher rates of high school graduation and degree attainment. Health professionals<\/a> are one of the highest employed in Texarkana, for example. Most of these positions need some type of degree. Could this be due to the stark financial differences between patrons? Maybe Texarkana needs a wider variety of job opportunities. Many college programs across at least three colleges and universities in Texarkana offer expertise in a whole slew of categories. Progressiveness, by the city of Texarkana, in introducing those job opportunities for college students and graduates is essential. The answer is not definitive.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Complements of the Ar-TX Redi Website<\/p><\/div>\n

The good news is that there are people interested in breaking this trend. Recently, a\u00a0<\/span>group of investors came together to create AR-TX Regional Economic Development, Inc. (AR-TX REDI). The group will pull resources from both sides of the town to try to create a more stable economic situation for all! The goal is to bring more business into this area, creating more jobs and financial progression. This is partly because of Texarkana\u2019s rich, career-building educational community, including schools such as Texas A&M University – Texarkana, Texarkana College, and the University of Arkansas Community College at Hope. In fact, TAMUT will be providing assistance to this organization by offering its facilities as a sort of headquarters. You, as a student and community member, can easily be involved in something that has potential to change your town tremendously.<\/p>\n

To display\u00a0this master plan, both governors met in the downtown area for a symbolic tearing down of state borders. Ledwell and Son Enterprises, a local truck and trailer manufacturing company,\u00a0built a hydraulic system into the famous Texas and Arkansas state line sign. When the cue came, the sign was \u2018knocked down,\u2019 eliminating the divide. There was a huge turnout and Texarkana citizens are very happily engaged with the program. Facebook was a hub for communal inspiration in regards to this<\/span>
\n<\/span>event. It was a cool idea and visual for something that sounds historically complicated.<\/span><\/p>\n

For more information, visit the AR-TX REDI website<\/a>, or their Facebook page. For more information about Texarkana\u2019s current economic status, please click here<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Do you have an uncontrollable desire to live next door to your biggest football rival and eventually make amends through governmental practices? If you do, I have the perfect place for you. Texarkana is widely known for its dividing state … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[311,312,300,198,142],"tags":[256,103,105],"class_list":["post-3739","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-am-events","category-community","category-events","category-news","category-texarkana","tag-community","tag-tamut","tag-texarkana"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3odG9-Yj","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4015,"url":"https:\/\/eagleeyemedia.org\/?p=4015","url_meta":{"origin":3739,"position":0},"title":"Park Yourself Here","author":"Epiphany La'Sha","date":"October 24, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"With Bowie County (Texas) and Miller County (Arkansas) combined, Texarkana is home to over 65,000 residents. The City of Texarkana, Texas has placed eleven beautiful parks, recreation and running trails throughout local neighborhoods (Tamut, Pleasant Grove ISD, Texas ISD, Liberty Eylau ISD) of Texarkana with the mission to improve the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Community"","block_context":{"text":"Community","link":"https:\/\/eagleeyemedia.org\/?cat=312"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eagleeyemedia.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Bringle-Lake-Wilderness-Area-300x140.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4689,"url":"https:\/\/eagleeyemedia.org\/?p=4689","url_meta":{"origin":3739,"position":1},"title":"Make a Favorite Christmas Memory","author":"Epiphany La'Sha","date":"November 25, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"In the midst of holiday season and chilly weather, moms and dads are preparing to bring their families to Main Street Texarkana for the 34th Annual Christmas Parade. 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Once a year our small city hosts a fair and rodeo for Texarkana and the surrounding areas.\u00a0 The fair has a lot of events to offer, like the Demolition\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Community"","block_context":{"text":"Community","link":"https:\/\/eagleeyemedia.org\/?cat=312"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2778,"url":"https:\/\/eagleeyemedia.org\/?p=2778","url_meta":{"origin":3739,"position":3},"title":"Holiday Season In Texarkana","author":"Leira Moore","date":"November 6, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Thursday November 9th Hands-on Texarkana The Great Escape Wine event. 6:00p.m-8:00p.m.\u00a0at 1915 Olive St., Texarkana Texas 75503.\u00a0Outdoor event and tickets must be bought in advance because seating is limited. Friday November 10th \u00a0 Jamey Johnson will be at Scottie's grill at 8400 West 7th Street. 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