[findinghome1]

I've read a lot of threads on this forum but still need some help sorting out the best place to live. I'm a fine artist and single mom to 3 year old boy with lots of energy to burn.

I want a town to settle in that's not too big, good schools, affordable housing, community feeling, diverse culture/activities and community support of the arts with art galleries that get good traffic even if only seasonal.

From what I've read, it seems the best choices are Fayetteville and Hot Springs and it seems the better choice may be Hot Springs due to it's closeness to Little Rock.

Would like any feedback and to know if there's any other areas I should check out. I love nature and being outdoors and want to expose my son to a healthy outdoorsy lifestyle that includes the arts.

Thanks in advance for any input.

[bagelw]

I think you're correct and Fayetteville or Hot Springs would be your best bet. Eureka Springs seemed to have a few gallaries the last time I visited but it is a much smaller community that would mainly cater to tourists. As far as your sons education I would say Fayetteville schools would be better than Hot Springs.

[findinghome1]

I've heard great things about Fayetteville, and having lived in Austin and close to Boulder, I do love the progressive lifestyle offered in college towns. What are the best elementary schools in Fayetteville?

I am planning a trip this fall to check things out. What are the best resources for finding rentals? I'd like to find a small home, condo or duplex to rent while learning the area.

[bagelw]

I can't really help with the elementary schools since I don't have children. I haven't heard any negatives about any certain schools in Fayetteville whereas I have heard negatives about Springdale and Rogers schools. I believe Washington, Root, or Holcomb are some of the better schools in Fayetteville but hopefully someone else here can verify that.

As far as finding a rental I would check Lindsey realty, Terri McNaughton, Google, and local papers which can be found online. NWA Times and Morning News are the big papers here. You'll just have to visit the area to get a feel about which part of town you'd like to live in. West Fayetteville is typical suburbs, south Fayetteville has the Mill District which is supposedly an up and coming artisy area, north Fayetteville is shopping central, and east Fayetteville has typical suburbs but is very scenic thanks to the mountains. The area around the University is hit and miss. There are some nice areas and not so nice areas. Wilson Park and Washington are the trendy areas to live but are expensive and I would think it would be hard to find rental property there. It really just depends on your price and preferences.

I'm not sure about this but you might also check out Bentonville. The Crystal Bridges art museum is being built there and there are the large craft fairs every year as well. I would like to think the art community there would grow thanks to that.

[Stormcrow73]

I would also concur on Fayetteville as a better choice than Hot Springs. Hot Springs has more galleries but Fayetteville (NWA metro area actually) has considerably more permanent wealth overall. Hot Springs is pretty tourist driven. Eureka Springs galleries would be tough to get into since it seems many of them have reduced their local artist involvement, having now begun to draw a more nation-wide range of artists. Here's a link to the statewide artist community in-turn has links to more specific communities and organizations, galleries, as well as juried exhibitions: Arkansas Arts Council supports arts organizations education Arkansas artists in schools communities. The arts are alive and well in Arkansas! As one artist to another, welcome home!

[SwinerBock]

For what it is worth, I'd like to throw El Dorado out there for your consideration. For a town of its size, to have an arts center like South Arkansas Arts Center - 2008 is pretty impressive. It gets tremendous community support here. The schools are decent, there is definitely affordable housing, and also a strong community feeling as well. Quite a few places in our downtown square host live music Friday and Saturday nights. Summers tend to have plenty of outdoor concerts on our square, as well as weekly performances of "Showdown at Sunset" (recreation of the Tucker / Parnell shootout). El Dorado is also home to the http://www.eldoradopromise.com/. El Dorado may not have as MUCH to offer as Hot Springs, Eureka Springs or NW Arkansas, but it does have the things that you are looking for.

[rackensack]

I think everyone else has given good input, and would agree that Fayetteville and Hot Springs would be the leading contenders. Hot Springs is going to have more gallery opportunities in the short term than NWA, but otherwise I think NWA would be a better choice for overall quality of life, especially if you're at the "finer" end of "fine arts". While Little Rock is a bigger market in pure number terms, I'm not sure that either the market for fine art or the population of other artists is actually bigger than that in NWA, and even if it is there's reason to believe that NWA will overtake it in time (and probably not that much time). Many of the transplants to NWA are middle- to upper-middle-class, with more disposable income for and cultural disposition toward the arts. The university also obviously attracts both students and faculty and staff from around the world, and with higher levels of education comes a greater likelihood that they will be interested in and supportive of the arts.

In Fayetteville, you're also less than a half-day drive from Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Kansas City, Springfield, St. Louis, and of course Little Rock and Memphis. About the only places you'd be closer to in Hot Springs would be Little Rock, Memphis, and Dallas. You're also closer to an airport (XNA) with reasonable connections to the rest of the world.

As others have pointed out, the educational opportunities for your son would definitely be better in Fayetteville -- not that Hot Springs is bad, but I definitely found during my five formative years in Fayetteville (7th grade to 11th grade) that having professors' kids from all over the world as a peer group made me take school, and intellectual and cultural pursuits generally, much more seriously than I would've anywhere else in Arkansas. I also had opportunities to participate in after-school informal study groups that did things like read and discuss James Joyce's Ulysses in a group led a U. of A. lit prof when I was still a sophomore in high school (the teacher who arranged that is still teaching at FHS, BTW, nearly 30 years later) -- that wouldn't have happened in Hot Springs or even Little Rock.

As far as leading an active outdoor lifestyle, I'd say that's a wash between the two. I'm partial to the northern half of the state myself, but that's probably just familiarity.

[findinghome1]

Thanks so everyone for your responses- the great insights, links at references, all very helpful and appreciated.

Fayetteville seems to best fit what I am seeking in the regards I can think of so far.

I'm most interested in the downtown area in finding a temporary rental. I'm wondering if apartments in the area are crowded with college students or if there's a good blend of professionals in the mix?

I've contacted Lindsey Realty but have not heard back yet. Doesn't look like they have a lot available, maybe the time of year. Would Jan-Feb seem a good time of year to move? I plan visit later this moth or next, but it will be short so want to do enough preliminary research to make good use of my time while there.

[bagelw]

The downtown area would have some college students but it's mostly young professionals or families. Lindsey most likely wouldn't have any rental properties in the downtown area. There are not many(actually none I can really think of) large apartment complexes around downtown and the majority of rentals are most likely privately owned. You'd have better luck checking the local papers or when you visit just drive around looking for places with "for rent" signs out front.

Lazenby and Coldwell/Faucette real estate might be two other places to check on for rental properties.

[Bull Winkus]

Hate to be a Googlemaniac, but you might try Google maps.

Google Maps

Search for "Fayetteville, AR" first.

Then click on "Find Businesses" and search "Apartment rental" for a list of apartments and their map locations.

Didn't see any near downtown. Plenty N of the University and along Hwy 71, though.

Speaking of Hwy 71. There's a place between Fayetteville and Alma that is called Artist's Point. It is maybe 5 miles below Winslow. I think the spot is so named for its beauty, but I'm just guessing.