What do area residents want?

If there's one thing Twin Lakes Area residents know, it's what they'd like to have in Mountain Home.

With the recent mini-boom of new businesses such as Buffalo Wild Wings and Hobby Lobby and the new Harps store going up on the west side of town, as well as some smaller shops and businesses opening, The Bulletin asked readers what national business they'd like to see come to Mountain Home.

We listed a few possible selections since that's how our Online Poll works, and there were 375 responses. For a strictly local poll question, that's a lot of responses. Unlike questions about "hot button" topics that generate responses from outside the area — after all, it is the World Wide Web — that's more than normally are received for local questions.

The results were posted online and in Tuesday's edition, but here's a refresher of how the tally went:

» 190 said "Golden Corral"

» 104 said "Target"

» 35 said "Red Lobster"

» 19 said "Shoney's, Denny's or Waffle House"

» 15 said "JCPenney"

» 12 said "K-Mart"

Eating, it seems, is preferred over shopping, at least with this list. In comments, other businesses were mentioned, too. But, even with this nonscientific poll, it's clear folks around Mountain Home want something here so they don't have to go elsewhere for those offerings. The plus of that is a good chunk of the revenue the businesses generate — wages for local folks, taxes for local government to benefit local residents — would stay here rather than go to Branson, or Springfield, or anywhere but here.

In many instances, chains can provide opportunities, jobs and more for local people and the community, as do locally owned businesses. And if Twin Lakes Area would like these businesses and others like them here — again, so they don't have to go elsewhere — that's great.

Here is what some of those responding to the poll had to say:

• "We definitely need a restaurant that is open from early morning until late at night where you can get (a) meal, or just a cup of coffee and a piece of pie."

• "My wife and I would like to see an Aldi's store here in Mountain Home. We now have to drive 50 miles to the closest one near us."

• "We definitely need a good seafood restaurant that sells more than catfish. I agree that we also need a superstore to compete with Walmart. After all, when stores compete, the customer is usually the winner with lower prices."

• "We do not need any more pizzas or Mexican food. We are overloaded on these."

• "We need definitely Aldi's and restaurants that are open on Saturdays, Sundays and have evening hours. Panera (Bread), Ryan's, Denny's, Ruby Tuesday's, just to name a few. No more Mexican, Chinese or pizza restaurants. We are overloaded on these."

• "Need some new things in the town."

• "I also would like to see a Target, Waffle House, and a Red Lobster."

• "We also desperately need an indoor exercise pool so we can work off all the calories from food here and help seniors stay healthier. This would be much more beneficial and life enhancing than a trout nature center at the college."

Other national businesses mentioned included Cracker Barrel, Kohl's, Chick-Fil-A, Applebee's, Olive Garden and Home Goods. Getting a Christian book store in town also was mentioned.

Granted, locally owned, mom-and-pop businesses are preferred to corporate chains and "big box" stores. Much of our economy is build upon small businesses. A lot of places where I eat and shop are local businesses. I'll be among the first to urge folks to go to local businesses and support them. Or, as one locally owned shop says on the back of its T-shirts, "break the chain."

Perhaps there are some local entrepreneurs who can create their own businesses that can do and offer what folks say they want from the chains. (I know with the way my hours are sometimes, a place to get a meal that's not fast food later at night is on my wish list.) Maybe there are local entrepreneurs who can acquire franchises for some of these businesses, providing a hybrid local/chain establishment.

Or, maybe someone with one of these national businesses will see this, or the poll results, and take a closer look at the Twin Lakes Area market. Although we may appear a small market at first glance, like Doctor Who's Tardis, our market area is bigger than it looks, and likely would be a good location for them.