Activities in Bella Vista for the college crowd (Fort Smith, Fayetteville: showing, apartments)

[NicoSilva]

I'm a 20 year old college student moving to Bella Vista so I can concentrate on college without having to worry about apartments, annoying boyfriends, roommates, cranky cars, etc. Needless to say, I'm taking online classes since University of Arkansas does not have my major - it's a fine arts major, and that school's limited in that area (and I am not switching, since it's the best thing ever).

Anyway, I was wondering what are some good activities in the area for someone my age. I won't be 21 until later this year, so it'll have to be sans alcohol. I'm thinking more along the lines of music venues, special events, coffee shops, interesting restaurants, and used bookstores.

What are some good hospitals? I have a medical condition that needs monitoring, so I'll need to contact a doctor over there and send over my medical records.

Are there art supply stores in the area? I know I could go to a crafts store, but I was wondering if there were any reasonably priced places that were locally owned, if possible. I need ample supplies of 2B pencils, especially (shows up on a scanner really well).

What are the major cities? Do they have any interesting attractions?

Any museums? How far is the closest art museum? I'm assuming pretty far.

Does Amtrak run through there? I prefer trains, personally, so I want to know that I can use it if I want to visit any friends on the east coast. With how gas prices are, and the parking situation where my friends live, I'd really rather not have to drive to meet up with them.

What about nature-oriented stuff? Because of my medical condition, I cannot do anything like hiking or swimming, but I can certainly sit on the shore of a lake or something and stare awhile.

Would the area be accessible by scooter (as in a Genuine Buddy 125)? I mean, would I be able to drive one around to the more notable, close areas without having to go over 50mph. The scooter I want to get would be able to handle highway speeds (company says 55mph, reviews online place it more at 70 as long as you're under 200 pounds), but I'd feel uncomfortable using on an interstate because of the amount of traffic I'd have to battle.

What are some good electronics stores in the area? My major involves web design (but is not limited to that) so I'm a bit of an electronics junkie. I'm not counting Best Buy or Walmart considering that Best Buy's overpriced and Walmart never carries enough of what I want in that department. Also, how is the Bella Vista MUG?

Is there shopping that does not require lots of walking, or offers wheelchairs for rent? Sorry, but I can't walk far at all, but my doctor doesn't want me to use a wheelchair as a crutch. That leaves out most outlet malls, and some shopping malls.

Basically, could you guys tell me about some interesting things in the area? I'm a city girl, so moving to a smaller area may put me into city-withdrawals. (Anyone who's lived in a 500,000+ city and moves someplace smaller knows this feeling.)

[DC at the Ridge]

There are several good hospitals in the area. If you are living in Bella Vista you will probably want to utilize Northwest Arkansas Medical.

I think there is an art supply store in Fayetteville near the University. Hobby Lobby in Rogers has a good art supply department, and many of the office supply stores can help you as well.

Besides Starbucks, there are several coffee shops in the area. I am partial to Iron Horse in downtown Rogers which has the whole coffee house ambiance going for it. But there are many others in the area.

Northwest Arkansas is pretty spread out. Once you get over (or through) the mountain north of Fort Smith, you are basically in Northwest Arkansas. I think Fayetteville is a true city. Springdale, Rogers and Bentonville are more like thriving towns. I think most people would agree that all four have distinct personalities. Fayetteville/Springdale are in Washington County which is a wet county, so there are more clubs and music venues there, especially near the University. Dickson Street is the most prominent neighborhood for entertainment and fun, it's the best starting point, and then as you become more familiar with the area you will find things to interest you scattered throughout the region.

Along Dickson Street is the Walton Arts Center which attracts world-class entertainment like Broadway shows, opera, ballet and so on. They also have art shows and there are several nearby galleries that feature local artists. Actually, there are several artists in the Bella Vista area that are quite impressive and have small galleries as well. The Crystal Bridges Museum is being constructed in Bentonville. It will be one of the pre-eminent museums in North America when it opens, and its emphasis will be on American art. This is a project of Alice Walton's, and she's spent quite a lot of money building an impressive collection. They've been sponsoring some artwalks and showing some of the paintings they've acquired on the Bentonville Square.

No Amtrak. There is an excursion train that runs from Northwest Arkansas down over the mountain to Van Buren. It's a lovely ride, beautiful views but definitely a tourist attraction rather than a transportation option. Public transportation is almost non-existent in Northwest Arkansas. Many of the smaller communities don't even have cab companies. Ozark Transit is a start, but its routes and schedule are very limited. You can get by on a scooter, but it's much easier if you've lived here a while and know the back roads. Interstate 540 and Highway 71 are the main connectors of the major shopping/entertainment areas and they are certainly not scooter friendly.

In terms of electronics, not my thing, I know there are lots of little outfits with particular things they focus on, like car audio, or computer gadgets and so on. Radio Shack and Bedford Video are where I'd start, and the people there might be able to recommend other resources in the area.

Good luck with your move!

[joebaldknobber]

This area will be over 500,000 people before long. This area will have anything you need within 5 years with the growth.

[Stormcrow73]

Originally Posted by joebaldknobber

This area will be over 500,000 people before long. This area will have anything you need within 5 years with the growth.

2006 NWA metro pop est. per the census bureau was 420k. 2007 est. is out but I've not seen anything but the gain in Benton and Wash. Counties and a quick comparison would put the 2007 metro area census at about 440-450k. Growth is tailing off so I don't expect you'll hit the 500k mark for another 5 years.

Of course, the problem with relating NWA to most other 500k range metro areas is that you have no single central city so you have a lot of duplication of consumer services and that results in more of the common chain establishments that lack the specialization or the higher end merchandise/services. Also because of the lack of that central city, you have no unified transit system that services the entire area.

I think it's just more reason for people of NWA to begin thinking about a federated merger.