Population: 184,055 Greater Metro Population: 580,625 Annual average temperature: 61.7° Summer (July) temperature: 81.4° Winter (January) temperature: 39.5° Number of days above 90°: 76 Average relative humidity: 68%
Housing and Schools:
The metro area has a total of 214,546 houses. House prices range from $50,000 to $500,000 and above. The median cost of a 3 bedroom home is $102,500. The area has numerous apartment complexes, with the 40 largest having 200 or more units. More than 95 complexes have 100 or more apartments. The Little Rock School district in the state’s largest. There are about 25,000 students at 50 schools, including 35 elementary schools, eight middle schools, and five senior high schools. Little Rock is also home to the Arkansas School for the Deaf and Arkansas School for the Blind.
Cost of Living:
To maintain the lifestyle of a $30,000 salary in Little Rock, a person living in the following cities would have to earn:
Atlanta
Boston
Chicago
Dallas
Los Angeles
New York (Manhattan)
Philadelphia
San Francisco
The city recently undertook an urban renewal program to revitalize the city's historic downtown. One initiative was the River Market District, located at historic La Harpe's landing next to the scenic Arkansas River. It features unique restaurants, nightlife, and shopping. On the east side of the district is the Clinton Presidential Center and Park which opened in early 2005. Outdoor performances of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra and various national music acts are hosted in River Front Park on the south end of the District on the banks of the Arkansas River. In late 2004, the city completed the state's only streetcar system in downtown Little Rock. The streetcar line loops through the Little Rock River Market District and across the Arkansas River to North Little Rock and the recently completed Alltel Arena. The arena hosts the UALR Trojan basketball team, the Arkansas Twisters and the Arkansas Rim Rockers as well as various concert events.
There is ample shopping in either of the city's two malls or the large commercial district in west Little Rock. Little Rock also holds the distinction of having the 10th most city park acreage per resident in the United States. This includes the 3 public golf courses in the city limits. Opportunities for outdoor activities abound in the Little Rock area. There is world class duck hunting in Stuttgart, Arkansas, only 45 minutes away. National forest lands in both the Ouachita and Ozark mountains are less than 1.5 hours from the city. Numerous fishing and recreational lakes are less than 1 hour away, such as Greers Ferry Lake, Lake Ouachita, and Lake Hamilton. The world record walleye was taken from Greers Ferry, and the world record rainbow trout was taken from the Little Red River (tail waters of Greers Ferry Lake). Arkansas is also home to one of the nation's National Rivers (the Buffalo) and several other canoeing and kayaking rivers.
