The wood-and-glass museum sits on a 217,000-sq.-ft. That aforementioned modern art museum? It's called Crystal Bridges, and Alice Walton - the daughter of Walmart founder Sam - donated about $317 million to build the ambitious project, which was completed in 2011. The omnipresence of Walmart can be a hard pill to swallow for a San Franciscan like myself, who almost never shops at chain stores - there's about three in my busy neighborhood - and has routinely been told to boycott the company because of its allegedly "dubious labor practices." This is not a viable model if you're living in Northwest Arkansas, where the Walton name is emblazoned on everything from the local performing arts center to the business school at the University of Arkansas. When you live in Northwest Arkansas, Walmart serves as your pharmacy, your grocery store, your furniture outlet, and even your optometrist. There are two Walmart Supercenters in Fayetteville alone. in 1962 and is headquartered in nearby Bentonville, Ark. Walmart is mentioned twice above for a reason: Much of life in Northwest Arkansas revolves around the company, which was founded in Rogers, Ark. Hunt Transport Services, and over 1,450 Walmart suppliers, according to the NWA Council. Much of this ripening is due to the presence of major corporations, including Walmart, Sam’s Club, Tyson Foods, J.B. The growing population is fueled by a low unemployment rate (3.2 percent) and a blossoming economy, local experts say. One recent study found NWA's economy growth rate will rank No. In the first quarter of 2019, about 150 permits were issued for new one- and two-family dwelling units, according to city records. The city is building - during my visit this month, I noticed at least two developments that weren't there six months earlier - but, like in San Francisco, construction isn't keeping pace with population growth. "We haven't seen this type of population and these numbers that we're seeing right now." "We have a situation right now that we haven't seen before," Arkansas Homeless Coalition president Sandra Wilson told a local paper. More than half of the reported homeless population were not staying in shelters. The hike in rent prices has correlated with a rise in homelessness in Northwest Arkansas, with a federal report finding homelessness in the region increased by nine percent from 2017 to 2018. With that population growth, the cost of purchasing a home in the area has increased by about 30 percent between 20. The most common complaint was an increase of motor traffic, while some of the twenty-somethings I spoke with were irked about bloated rent prices ( coupled with the state's notorious lack of tenant protections).īetween 20, the population of Northwest Arkansas increased by 9.1 percent. News ranking, locals either delighted in it - "About time!" - or rolled their eyes - they didn't need a national report to tell them what they already knew. On a recent visit, when I mentioned the U.S. Unlike Bay Area locals, many NWA natives seemed to welcome the changes, viewing them as a step in the right direction, rather than a loss of metropolitan identity. My future-forward thinking was encouraged by locals, many of whom are astonished and thrilled with the changes the region has seen in the last few decades (especially those who already own their homes). Even I’ve considered plunking down a small (by Bay Area metrics), five-figure down payment on a two-bedroom near the city center as an investment property. Fayetteville, where the median home price clocks in at $177,942, also has a "high value index" (median annual household cost divided by annual household income) of 8.2, compared to San Francisco’s dismal 4.9.Īffordability might be the biggest draw for Bay Area residents looking for a change of scenery.
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