Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Arkansas
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 08-19-2010, 08:52 PM
 
Location: Columbus, Ohio
406 posts, read 1,426,045 times
Reputation: 149

Advertisements

Arkansas is the southern state that I know the least about by far. Overall I would love to hear all about your state, the people, the culture, the food, the weather, the cost-of-liveing, crime rate, your best cities, things to do there, is there sprawl, is it growing too fast, are there alot of transplants like other areas in the south are suffering from, how bad is traffic, Are there alot of parks, are houseing cost low etc. I would like to know all you can think of to tell me if y'all could be soo kind.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 08-19-2010, 09:18 PM
 
Location: Little Rock AR USA
2,457 posts, read 7,342,897 times
Reputation: 1899
Quote:
Originally Posted by iwantyall2know View Post
Arkansas is the southern state that I know the least about by far. Overall I would love to hear all about your state, the people, the culture, the food, the weather, the cost-of-liveing, crime rate, your best cities, things to do there, is there sprawl, is it growing too fast, are there alot of transplants like other areas in the south are suffering from, how bad is traffic, Are there alot of parks, are houseing cost low etc. I would like to know all you can think of to tell me if y'all could be soo kind.
First, I don't like "y'all" from someone from Ohio Having said that; the Ozark Plateau in along the north border, Ouachita Mountains central, and Delta south and east. Culture and food is very diverse. Lower temp in the north than south and there are exceptions but we are more likely to have ice in winter than snow. Cities are; Little Rock/North Little Rock Metro area, Fort Smith, and the northwest corner. Crime rate; that's one of the first questions people ask, but, compared to what? Things to do; we are "The Natural State" so outside recreation is high priority, but if you are into the club scene you can find that too in the above mentioned areas. Sprawl; that's a personal point of view, some here in L.R. say yes others say it's progress. We have lots of retirees and people coming to work in our better economy, so there are transplants. We have lots of wonderful state parks and one national park. Your other questions are open to personal opinion and perception. Come on down, there is always room for another transplant
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-19-2010, 10:33 PM
 
Location: SW MO
23,593 posts, read 37,308,419 times
Reputation: 29336
I can attest to the fact that the NW Ozarks portion of AR is gorgeous with loads of outdoor activities to be enjoyed and we've found the people to be delightful. We're in SW MO and it's about the same.

Coming from Ohio (we have two children and their families there), our summer is warmer and a bit more humid (this summer is unseasonally hot), our winters are quite a bit milder, our springs are beautiful as is fall. Violent crime is likely significantly less than where you are and the cost of houses and overall cost of living quite a bit lower.

I'll leave it others to fill in the blanks!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-20-2010, 08:02 AM
 
37 posts, read 68,765 times
Reputation: 27
"Your other questions are open to personal opinion and perception. Come on down, there is always room for another transplant"

ArkansasSlim

I can't wait to visit your beautiful state, you are very helpful and informative. I personally was concerned with the attitude of the people in the state towards transplants, however you seem to epitomise the charm of the southern people

Op: you can find some info on an area by going and putting in the area to be searched. There you can find info on health, economy, education, crime, cost of living etc...
I know nothing of the area and have been researching a little but from what I have seen so far it looks like a wonderful place, we can't wait to visit in November! Best of luck to you.

Last edited by Yac; 11-17-2020 at 01:44 AM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-20-2010, 08:06 AM
 
35,095 posts, read 50,961,628 times
Reputation: 62660
I'm going to the Fayetteville, AR area in a couple weeks to visit fresh transplants from IL.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-20-2010, 08:11 AM
 
Location: Bella Vista, Ark
77,772 posts, read 104,112,011 times
Reputation: 49244
Quote:
Originally Posted by iwantyall2know View Post
Arkansas is the southern state that I know the least about by far. Overall I would love to hear all about your state, the people, the culture, the food, the weather, the cost-of-liveing, crime rate, your best cities, things to do there, is there sprawl, is it growing too fast, are there alot of transplants like other areas in the south are suffering from, how bad is traffic, Are there alot of parks, are houseing cost low etc. I would like to know all you can think of to tell me if y'all could be soo kind.
Ok, I will just give you my quick run down of our state. Everyone will have something different to say, some prositives and of course, some negatives:

Yes, it is southern, but depending, where in the state you are, it seems more mid western..The NOWEST part of the state borders, MO, OK and Kansas. The southern part is Delta and very sounthern, with the rest falliing inbetween. Even accents are a little different, depending on where you live. It is considered a rural state. lots of history, small towns, town squares, friendly people but also on the poor side. Again, depending on where you live. The Hot Spings and Hot Springs Village area as well as the NW corner have a higher standard of living than some parts of the state. Cost of living, throughout the state is lower than most places. Overall the state, though democrat leaning as far as registration is concerned, is pretty conservative.

Many people think of AR as being a bunch of Bible Thumpers, Hillbillies, but that doesn't truely discribe the state. For instance, Fayetteville, is liberal to some degree, a typical college town and very diverse. Bella Vista is geared to retireees but beginning to lean toward families and the Bentonville area is home to 3 or 4 major coorporations.

There is no shortage of outdoor activities, are certainly no shortage of wonderful scenery.

Foodwise, I haven't really noticed any real trends, of course things like Cat fish are big items, as people fish for catfish all the time and do lean toward fried foods (more than we should) There is a mixture midwest and southern favorites, but nothing that I connect really native to our state, like some states. Again, in the slightly more populated areas you can get about any ethnic foods that appeal to you, but many are not terribly authentic (doesn't mean not good) Oh, along with catfish, bar-b-que is fairly popular.

Our weather is a mixture, the past 9 months are not typical, our winter was cold, snowy and icy and our summer much hotter than usual. Normally winters are mild with about 10 inches or so of snow (maybe a couple of storms) plus an occassional ice storm. It usually melts in a day or two. The summers can be humid but the temps do not get much above the low 90s and it isn't nearly as humid as the deep south or even parts of the east coast and mid part of the country. I am talking about NWA right now, further south in the state is hotter with warmer winters.

To sum it up, we have a little bit of everything, high moral values that we often think of as mid western, better weather overall than the true mid-west and a great quality of life. But we do have problems as well. As I said the state is rural and many areas very poor, the educational system is good in some places and very bad in others and the old fashion values which we love so much, also comes with some outdated ideas. Many of the areas are not accepting of change.

Nita
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-20-2010, 09:33 AM
 
4,901 posts, read 8,690,737 times
Reputation: 7117
One national park? Isn't the Buffalo River a national park also?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-20-2010, 09:57 AM
 
Location: Roswell, GA
697 posts, read 3,008,021 times
Reputation: 509
Quote:
Originally Posted by Luvvarkansas View Post
One national park? Isn't the Buffalo River a national park also?
It's a National River (the first in the country). It's administered by the National Parks Service, but is not technically a National Park.

There are also National Memorials (Arkansas Post), National Historic Sites (Central High in LR and Ft. Smith), and National Military Parks (Pea Ridge), all of which fall under the NPS, but only Hot Springs is a National Park.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-20-2010, 05:30 PM
 
Location: Little Rock AR USA
2,457 posts, read 7,342,897 times
Reputation: 1899
Quote:
Originally Posted by Luvvarkansas View Post
One national park? Isn't the Buffalo River a national park also?
Oooops Of course
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-02-2010, 04:38 PM
 
5 posts, read 8,687 times
Reputation: 10
My whole family lives in Sebastian County, which includes Fort Smith and surrounding small towns. I'm native Arkansan, as well.
Just like other places you'll meet positive ones and negative ones. Some friendly, some not-so-friendly. Heavy southern accents, of course. Primarily laid back, a bit slower paced, and quiet. Kind of a low-energy, repressed, Bible-belt feel in this area, but my family has managed to deal with it whereas I had to leave for more social and mental stimuli.
You'll find all types of typical restaurant franchises, Red Lobster, Olive Garden, fast food places, pizza, etc. here along with local BBQ and diners. Fort Smith has a German restaurant, Emmy's, a few Vietnamese restaurants, Chinese buffets. This area could use some improvement in Mexican restaurant selections and quality.
The weather is very hot and muggy in the summer, which tapers off as the seasons change. The country scenery is beautiful. Plenty of places to fish, hike, and camp. The smaller towns are spacious and affordable enough to buy acres of land and feel truly free to roam around without having neighbors around you, which is what I miss most about Arkansas. Housing is more affordable compared to other cities in the country. Crime happens but neither I nor any family and friends have experienced it here as opposed to other cities. Could use more art, theater, and music venues. Traffic is low to moderate.

I had always thought Fort Smith had more potential with the downtown and river area, but as the trend goes this area is very slow to change. It's ideal for an outdoors person, but for a cosmopolitan person other areas in Arkansas may be more suitable.

Also, I want to add that Fort Smith has had a slight growth rate from 2001-2006, but may have declined in the last few years according to the U.S. Census. For now it's approximately 83,400...just to give you an idea.

Last edited by kapow; 09-02-2010 at 05:19 PM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Arkansas

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top