[dc_denizen]

Originally Posted by xzmattzx

The principles of the free market can still lead to developing those surface parking lots, even in a strong property rights state. Parking lots suggest a weak demand for land, which means there are lots of development opportunities.

Without having been to Arkansas, or anywhere in that part of the South, I'm wondering if the big issue is that Little Rock is a place that no one wants or needs to go. It's not like a college town like Fayetteville farther north, or Oxford or Starkville in Mississippi. It's not a retirement area like northwest Arkansas, or a tourist area like Biloxi. It doesn't have an industry that brings in talent, like in Huntsville, Alabama. It's not a trendy little city, like Columbia or Charleston in South Carolina, or Savannah. Little Rock appears to outsiders to be a pretty boring place, and perhaps it's also a boring place to people who live in Arkansas (Arkansans?). The first step would be to make Little Rock a good place to go for a quick weekend. Eventually the places that bring in people for the weekend will bring in some people as residents.

bit odd though for a state capitol to have so much parking.