Rating Your Neighborhood
Walking to the post office,the grocery store, a school, to work, or a restaurant makes a walkable neighborhood. This idea of walkability, whether in a traditional neighborhood or a urban area, is a cornerstone of today’s Green communities. Walkability is what makes Hillcrest, River Market and my neighborhood, SoMa (SouthMain Street) desirable.
In SoMa, I live on a public bus route, bike trail,and the Little Rock Marathon route is a half- block away We have 2 hardware stores, 2 pharmacies,5 restaurants, 5 Schools, 3 Parks, 1 library,a post office,2 cultural institutions and we are only 10 minutes from the River Market Pavillion.
Walkable neighborhoods promote economic activity, increase safety, community spirit, healthy lifestyles and decrease automobile use. Walkable neighborhoods have public centers, density, mixed-use,mixed income,parks,public space, pedestrian areas, nearby-schools, worplaces and streets for everyone. If you are interested in your neighborhood’s walkability, go to www.WalkScore.com, it is not perfect, but certainly interesting.