A dozen coffee shops in Bentonville, Rogers and Fayetteville are participating in the region's first caffeine crawl this Saturday. The event is designed to promote and support independent coffee shops.

Roby Brock, from our content partner Talk Business and Politics , checks in one last time before the holidays. He helps us consider the likelihood of whether Tom Cotton could replace Jim Mattis as Secretery of Defense, what preliminary scores for dispensaries mean for the eventual availability of medical cannabis in Arkansas, and more.

A trade delegation from Mexico spent a few days this week in Arkansas, encouraging local companies to do business in Queretaro, Mexico. Trade emmisaries also invited businesses to a trade mission in the Mexican state in April that coincides with the World Trade Organization's 50th General Assembly.

Becca Martin Brown, features editor at the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, returns to help us get into the holiday spirit with some pre-Christmas events happening this weekend.

Local singer-songwriter Ashtyn Barbaree recently went on a short tour of Europe. She was sent by The House of Songs as a musical ambassador for northwest Arkansas. This week, she came by our studios to talk about the experience, and she also performed a few songs for us.

The Washington County Quorum Court is considering several big issues as it wraps up business for 2018. Among those issues is consideration of what to do about the county detention center, which county officials say is costing the county more money than it should. We get an update on plans to expand the current county jail and on proposals to change how the lockup operates.

A Charlie Brown Christmas has been a favorite for decades, but one group may not be such fans of the holiday special. Tracy S. Morris, producer of the podcast I Am Not Making This Up , returns to Ozarks at Large to tell us about the effect A Charlie Brown Christmas has had on aluminum Christmas tree sales.

Holiday package theft is a perennial problem, but a new statewide surveillance initiative is designed to federally prosecute package thieves this holiday season and beyond. In addition, one local police detective is working to deter pagage thieves in his town.

Arvest is adding two senior leadership positions to its corporate structure. In today's Northwest Arkansas Business Journal Report, we learn how those new positions will help the bank better serve its customers. Plus, we hear from Alex Blass of Sage Partners in Rogers about a new, $100 million, 27-acre mixed use development in the Pinnacle Hills area.

An underground fire at a former dump site has burned in Bella Vista for nearly five months. The city is looking for ways to put it out, but residents aren't happy about the situation. We learn more on how the fire has affected residents and how it might be extinguished.