Great Neighborhoods Partnership

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Getting to know your neighbors and being engaged in your community can be a rewarding experience for you and your neighbors. Organizing or joining a neighborhood group or association is a great way to get involved.

Printable Program Overview

Purpose

Bentonville’s Great Neighborhoods Partnership connects the Mayor’s core goals of transparency and improved communication with residents to the Community Plan’s goal of stronger neighborhoods to establish Bentonville as a “great place to plant roots.”

Mission

Great communities are a collection of great neighborhoods. Great neighborhoods have these four characteristics: 

friendly, safe, attractive, engaged 

The mission of this initiative is to strengthen Bentonville by supporting and encouraging great neighborhood characteristics by:

  • building bonds among residents (friendly);
  • cultivating a sense of security and safety (safe);
  • empowering residents to enhance their neighborhood (attractive); and,
  • fostering communication between residents and the city (engaged).


Components

The Bentonville Great Neighborhood Partnership has four components:

  • Neighborhood Planning & Support
  • Neighborhood Partners
  • Neighborhood Advisory Committee
  • Neighborhood Programs

Click on the tabs below for more information about each component.

Please Note! This is a new program and is a work in progress. Details may change and adjust as we fine tune and expand resources and offerings.

  1. Planning & Support
  2. Neighborhood Partners
  3. Advisory Committee
  4. Neighborhood Programs

Planning & Support

Comprehensive Planning staff provides assistance for neighborhood associations - those organizing or already organized. They provide resources and tips on neighborhood organizing, neighborhood events, and goal setting.

Neighborhood Organizing

The first step is to check if a neighborhood association (or property owner association) already exists in your area. Contact staff and they can help you make this determination. If one does exist, reach out to the contact person to see how to become involved.

If no association exists, talk to some of your neighbors to gauge interest in organizing. If there is interest, set up a meeting with a core group to discuss. 

The key to a good neighborhood association is getting to know your neighbors and a good way to do this is through communication. A quick and efficient method is to setup a Facebook group page or use Nextdoor, a provide social network for your neighborhood. Door-to-door visits, while more time consuming, is an effective way to gather information, determine the level of interest in establishing a neighborhood association, and get to know your neighbors.

As the program grows, resources will be added to the webpage and made available. Contact staff for assistance in establishing a neighborhood association, help in determining appropriate geographical boundaries, and more information about the program. 

Learn more with the
Neighborhood Organizing Guide

Planning and Goal Setting

Having goals for the association can help members feel they are working toward improving their neighborhood. Contact staff for assistance with prioritizing neighborhood goals and preparing a plan for implementation.  

Support Materials

The city offers the preparation of neighborhood maps and other information for registered neighborhoods. Contact staff to request materials to help with organizing or goal setting.

Resources

  1. Benefits of Neighborhood Associations
  2. Neighborhood Organizing Guide
  3. Project Ideas
  4. Sample Bylaws