Sammy00

I completely disagree. I've lived in Michigan for sometime now, and I must say that you are overestimating Little Rock's national negative connotations. I also have relatives that live in Jackson, and they prefer Little Rock head and shoulders above Jackson. I realize this is merely a sample of the national perception of Little Rock, but I absolutely do not believe that people perceive Little Rock quite as badly as you.

Little Rock ranks #22 in the nation in Forbes Magazine's new "Best Places for Business and Careers": http://www.forbes.com/2009/03/20/bizplaces...thisSpeed=30000 Fayetteville/NWA came in 4th. I believe this is the first time I have seen Little Rock ranked highly in one of these surveys. Maybe people are beginning to realize how well things are going in Little Rock compared to other places around the country.

Northwest Arkansas ranks 4th in Forbes magazine's new "Best Places for Business and Careers" ranking: http://realestate.yahoo.com/promo/best-pla...mQtY2FyZWVycw-- It appears NWA would have ranked first if not for its abysmal "Education Attainment" rating. All others were very high. Little Rock came in at #22.

Here is the announcement of Allegiant service to XNA from the Morning News, just in case anyone missed it. http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2009/03/...anewairline.txt

Little Rock comes in at #2 on Forbes list of Top 5 Most Affordable Places to Live During an Economic Downturn. Sights job growth... http://www.forbes.com/2008/11/12/cheap-cit...thisSpeed=15000

I don't know about Little Rock but I did read a report the other day claiming that Amtrak is expecting over 27 million passengers this year, up from last year's record of 25.8 million. Does seem to be a nice alternative if you have the extra time. Fairly inexpensive, and probably fun.

That sounds like a fabulous idea. I was just reading a Forbes article about the world's ten best airports. One thing in common: Easy access to downtown. Obviously, I don't expect this to propel LIT into the the world's best, but it would be a nice feature. Great for both the airport and downtown.

Tinseltown in Benton is the best theater in Central Arkansas outside of the Rave. Amazing for Benton to have something like that. Though I haven't been to the new Chenal 9.

It depends on what you mean by diversified, but I am from Central Arkansas, and there is absolutely no dening that Fayettevillie is different from the rest of the state in some ways. The green movement and increasingly liberal (I love that word ) viewpoints is certainly a start...

A new list that has appeared on Yahoo's front page entitled "Best Cities for Work and Play" has Fayetteville landing at #7. 1. Houston 2. Raleigh 3. Omaha 4. Boise 5. Colorado Springs 6. Austin 7. FAYETTEVILLE 8. Sacramento 9. Des Moines 10. Provo http://finance.yahoo.com/real-estate/artic...,-Work-and-Play And the accompanying flattering video: http://www.kiplinger.com/video/index.html?...ctid=1576242350

I'm biased towards Fayetteville, but it just seems that the WAC adds so much to the environment of Fayetteville. The funky, artsy, green, progressive vibe that I think everyone in Fayetteville loves. I don't mean to ruffle any feathers, but to me it goes back to the way I view each city: Forward-thinking Fayetteville. Retail Rogers. Businesslike Bentonville. Industrial Springdale (out of good alliterations)

Northwest Arkansas deemed "Recession Proof." http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2008/05/...essionproof.txt

Some of my friends go to the one in Fayetteville often, and all of them say they like it more than the Cold Stone Creamery. Never been, but only heard good things.

Yes, Miami did well when I was there. However, it was a brand new route, so maybe that had something to do with it. Never saw Raleigh being successful. I thought they would add Seattle or Boston before Raleigh because we had far more luggage to those places than any other destination without a direct route. Architect, I was not trying to somehow indirectly say that XNA is better than LIT, which seems to be how you took it.

Sad news in the Dem-Gaz yesterday. AA is dropping service to Miami and Raleigh. Delta is also dropping Salt Lake City (if I remember correctly). I worked for AA at the airport last summer (I'm a UA student) and the loss of Miami surprises me a bit. They seemed to do well when I was there. Delta dropping SLC surprises me a bit as well. They now don't offer anything west of Cincy.

I've only driven by the Promenade site one time. I've seen some speculation that it could be expanded at some point. How much space is available if they decide to do so?

Ha, well, all I can say is that we're trying, and I think slowly, but surely, we're catching up. There's a long story about how the development of new stores in the area was held up for a few years due to a dispute over plans to build a new, gigantic mall and the residents who lived around the proposed site. Everything was on hold while that was in court and, of course, it fell through. Finally, things seem to be progressing again.

Well, I'm aware of these places. I guess I should have specified a little more. Somewhere to shop for golf clubs, pool tables, baseball bats & gloves, etc... The places at the mall are clothing stores more than anything, and Hibbett is alright but still fairly small. A large sporting goods store would put these to shame.

Okay, I've been meaning to rant about this for a while... NWA needs a sporting goods store. I was trying to buy some cleats and gloves for intramurals not long ago, and the only place I knew to go was Wal-Mart. Needless to say, their selection is not overwhelming. Can we not get an Academy Sports, Sports Authority, or Dick's Sporting Goods? I wish I had the money to open one around here, because it would be extremely successful.

Small increase in passengers, large increase in cargo (compared to '06)... Final 2007 XNA info: http://www.flyxna.com/files/enplanements.htm

They need to pursue a Williams Sonoma and/or Macy's. The Pinnacle Hills Promenade in Rogers has a WS. Don't know if they could pull off a Macy's, but that would really spark some interest. One would think the theater and Apple Store would do nothing but help them in their pursuit of other higher end retail. Apple would open anyone's eyes.

Wasn't certain where to put this. It updates a few things including new restaurants, and the Bellafont project. http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2007/10/...07bizscapes.txt

Got to disagree about the Park Plaza statement. The Promenade blows it out of the water, in my opinion. The Promenade is much bigger, has more stores, better stores, has a better overall atmosphere, has a better Dillards, Movie Theater, Restaurants, and it will continue to improve, unlike Park Plaza. When my parents are in town for the football games (they live in Benton), they'll wait to do whatever "mall shopping" they need to do here at the Promenade.

Thanks Architect. It's exciting and hopefully it will continue for quite some time. I always thought Little Rock was on the verge of really being something... Seems like it might be on its way.

I'm originally from Benton, but for the last 3 years, I've lived here in Fayetteville. I sat back watched Little Rock creep along for years, however, there seems to be some serious stuff going on right now. Lots of job creation, improved roads, more shopping centers, new and exciting stores, more flights (maybe even international) to LIT, etc... At the same time, I haven't been a member on the board for a long. So maybe I was just missing all of the ongoings before. Is Little Rock really revving its engine? Does anyone expect a big jump in the 2010 census?