crime comparisons HS and HSV (Benton, Bryant: shop, cabin, safety)

Luvvarkansas · 02-02-2014, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by southigo45

The last few years it's changed drastically to the point I'm afraid to put my dog out at night and very cautious during the day. New Year's day - just 4 weeks ago- there was a car jacking on my corner. I woke up to gun shots at 7am. Police were running all over the neighborhood looking for him with their rifles out. There was gunfire exchange and they killed him 1 block from my house. This is a 360 degree turn from when I moved in. I'm totally paranoid about where I move to the next time.

Wow....sounds like Hot Springs Village would seem like heaven to you.

jimnelson1 · 02-02-2014, 08:18 PM

This is to anyone serious about moving to Hot Springs Village.

Subscribe to the local paper, the Village Voice. You can read the Mayberry like police blotter, see the activities and clubs that are active in the Village, and get a feel for the issues here.

Luvvarkansas · 02-03-2014, 09:33 AM

Good idea, jimnelson. I found it online at hsvvoice.com. Gonna give it a quick look right now! (Well phooey, you have to subscribe even to look at it online. Not quite ready to do that yet.)

I used to get a real kick out of reading the Newton County newspaper from Jasper. Its police report was like Mayberry, too. It also still had (probably still has) those little columns that people from the surrounding communities would write up and send in....so-and-so went to visit her sister for a week in Branson, a baby shower was given for so-and-so (a good time was had by all), and so on. I love it!

southigo45 · 02-05-2014, 12:06 PM

The news paper sounds like a good idea. I was raised in a small town in ILL that had the same chatty info. It was so important to get your latest social adventures in the paper. Everyone saw it and your phone rang off the hook from your friends and people you hadn't heard from in months wanting all the nitty gritty details. I moved from that "every one's nose in your business" decades ago but I think I'm ready to go back to that silly nonsense again. It's a much easier life and knowing your dog had her 10th birthday with friends over for pupcake and ice cream IS read worthy news to some of us - lol

As I'm zeroing in on the 4 states I'm considering, I'm still coming back to Arkansas. I like the style of houses with sun rooms in Florida but there seems to be a homeyness about Arkansas that is pulling me there. I've mentioned when I was married, we had a piece of land in the Rogers/Fayetteville area by Beaver Dam or lake and I just loved it there. We were in that area quite a bit on business trips. I used to make all my bread and found a flour mill close by where I purchased all my flour. I'm sure after all these years, it's closed but in researching, I have found a beekeeper in the HSV area who has honey and bee pollen and I also read that there is a year round farm market in HS too. These are all things that are important to me. So I might be making a trip down there when the weather breaks here to check things out. I sure appreciate all the input everyone has given. It really helps in making decisions.

jimnelson1 · 02-05-2014, 09:12 PM

Around here sun rooms are called "Arkansas rooms", a lot of the houses in HSV have them, including ours.

bkern1989 · 02-05-2014, 10:48 PM

I don't live there, so I can't accurately say what it's usually like, but my dad and I stay a week in Hot Springs Village several years back. As for Hot Springs Village, we had no problem with that as it seemed secluded from Hot Springs. We weren't much of a fan of Hot Springs tough. The city seemed to be in rough shape when we were there and while I was pumping gas, an African American man approached my dad and I and basically TOLD us that we either give him a ride to Little Rock or we give him $40 to hitch a ride there. We don't know what would have happened if we didn't give him cash and we didn't want to find out, so we gave him the cash and he went on his way. The city being in such bad shape and that situation at the station was enough to make me want to leave. Again, that was several years ago so it could be different now.

Luvvarkansas · 02-06-2014, 10:13 AM

Yeah, Hot Springs proper was a little "shabby" the last time we were there, but it has been probably 12 years or more. I hope they've done something to revitalize it, because it's a nice setting and has an interesting history, and plenty of old buildings.

That's the only thing that would make me hesitate about moving to HS Village....my major shopping (clothes, furniture, etc.) would have to be done in HS. I know I could go to Little Rock (and it looks like LR has some great malls), but it's further. I think maybe Benton has a small mall, though?

Speaking of that, can anyone weigh in on exactly how long it takes to get to Little Rock from HSV?

JeffAtkins · 02-06-2014, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Luvvarkansas

Speaking of that, can anyone weigh in on exactly how long it takes to get to Little Rock from HSV?

From the East gate to I430/I630 interchange (West Little Rock) - about 45 minutes

btoverdrive · 02-06-2014, 10:42 AM

"That's the only thing that would make me hesitate about moving to HS Village....my major shopping (clothes, furniture, etc.) would have to be done in HS. I know I could go to Little Rock (and it looks like LR has some great malls), but it's further. I think maybe Benton has a small mall, though?"

There is good shopping in the Benton/Bryant area without having to go to LR.

Luvvarkansas · 02-06-2014, 10:49 AM

Quote:

From the East gate to I430/I630 interchange (West Little Rock) - about 45 minutes

So, if you lived on the west side of HSV, about a hour?

That wouldn't bother me too badly, as I drive an hour right now to do all that. But it would be nice to not have to drive that long.

I know Hot Springs has a mall and furniture stores and all that. And I think that the crime probably doesn't happen much at those places. Maybe bkern's station was just in a bad neighborhood and he didn't know it.

You know what, I just had the thought to check out the crime stats on here for Hot Springs and the city to which I currently drive to go to a mall.....the overall crime rate index for HS is 563.7, and the index for the city I shop in is 756! And I feel perfectly safe there, taking the usual common-sense precautions such as looking around when going to my car alone at night, locking my car doors at all times, staying out of the bad areas, etc. Little Rock's index, by the way, is 825.2! Although I've seen it discussed in other threads that you just have to know where not to go in LR also.

I think I would feel, and be, perfectly safe shopping in Hot Springs.