Question about Little Rock (Conway, Jacksonville: job market, university, to live in)

[am2]

Little Rock has a population of around 200k i think. Will it ever break 300k in the future?

[strumpeace]

Not likely. LR's population has been stagnant for at least the last two decades. I can see LR following in the footsteps of similarly-sized Jackson, Mississippi, which has actually shrunk over the last several years.

For LR to grow substantially, there has to be some draw. And there's not.

[bchris02]

Originally Posted by am2

Little Rock has a population of around 200k i think. Will it ever break 300k in the future?

Little Rock hasn't even broken 200k yet. Its like 183,000 or something. The only reason Little Rock isn't shrinking is because of the growth in West Little Rock. The inner city (east of I-430) is losing population. Most of the growth in Central Arkansas is happening in Bryant, Benton, Conway, Cabot, Maumelle, and Sheridan. Little Rock has a very negative perception both within the state of Arkansas and across the country. It has to overcome this if there is to ever be any real growth in the city limits.

[PurpleLove08]

If we bring a good company or two to the area and people decide they want to live in LR, possibly.
That or the Duggars can decide to move their clan here and their generations can repopulate the area.

HP is bringing a lot of new people into the Conway area. We need something like that to happen in LR.

[bchris02]

Originally Posted by PurpleLove08

If we bring a good company or two to the area and people decide they want to live in LR, possibly.
That or the Duggars can decide to move their clan here and their generations can repopulate the area.

HP is bringing a lot of new people into the Conway area. We need something like that to happen in LR.

I think HP's decision to move to Conway and not Little Rock has to do with prospective employee's perception of Little Rock along with the university presence. Even in Conway, I have heard they are having a difficult time filling jobs because of the people don't want to relocate to Central Arkansas. The good news is its fairly easy for qualified people already in the area to be hired. Here in Charlotte where there is 30,000+ people moving here every year it is a lot more competitive job market.

[am2]

Originally Posted by bchris02

I think HP's decision to move to Conway and not Little Rock has to do with prospective employee's perception of Little Rock along with the university presence. Even in Conway, I have heard they are having a difficult time filling jobs because of the people don't want to relocate to Central Arkansas. The good news is its fairly easy for qualified people already in the area to be hired. Here in Charlotte where there is 30,000+ people moving here every year it is a lot more competitive job market.

I live in CLT too, what part of LR did ya move from?

[bchris02]

Originally Posted by am2

I live in CLT too, what part of LR did ya move from?

I lived in the Bryant area for about a year and then the downtown area for about six months. I honestly can't say I miss Little Rock. Charlotte is much better in just about every aspect.

[am2]

Originally Posted by bchris02

I lived in the Bryant area for about a year and then the downtown area for about six months. I honestly can't say I miss Little Rock. Charlotte is much better in just about every aspect.

Definately agree. I did like the Chenal Parkway corridor though, but it was a long ass commute to Jacksonville for work.

[bchris02]

Originally Posted by am2

Definately agree. I did like the Chenal Parkway corridor though, but it was a long ass commute to Jacksonville for work.

One thing I didn't like nor understand is the lack of quality retail in Chenal and Little Rock in general. As much money is in Chenal (and to a lesser extent the Heights) you would think the city would be able to support quality stuff, but instead people have to drive to Dallas or Memphis for decent shopping.

[am2]

Originally Posted by bchris02

One thing I didn't like nor understand is the lack of quality retail in Chenal and Little Rock in general. As much money is in Chenal (and to a lesser extent the Heights) you would think the city would be able to support quality stuff, but instead people have to drive to Dallas or Memphis for decent shopping.

that much is true.