Teenagers from Bryant High School re-enact holiday preparations at a turn of the century farm during Christmas in Bryant at Farmstead.
The City of Bryant complex of offices
The new Bryant branch of the Saline County Library
Bryant is a rapidly growing town in central Arkansas just a few miles southwest of Little Rock, the state's capital. Bryant is the fifth fastest growing city in Arkansas. The city has a population of 12,825.
Bryant officials say there is good reason for this remarkable growth. It's called Quality of Life. Ask residents or newcomers why they chose Bryant and you will find some common threads in their responses: excellent schools, safe neighborhoods, caring people and newer homes.
Quick access to Little Rock on Interstate 30 means Bryant has a transportation advantage. It gives Bryant businesses and residents access to all the amenities of a major city without all the hassles. Yet Bryant's more endearing features have little to do with physical location and more with state of mind. Bryant prides itself on family values, strong schools and active churches. Many new friends are made at the ballparks as families support the youth football, baseball, softball, swimming and soccer events.
Seniors are an integral part of Bryant community life. More often than not they are at the ballpark, too. Yet they have their own activities at the Bryant Senior Adult Center. Saturday nights the senior adult center is a very active place, featuring live musical entertainment.
Fall Fest, the annual Bryant city festival, draws around 11,000 people - that's a crowd as big as the city's population! Bryant is the center of life for many outlying communities in Saline County. Communities such as Avilla, Springhill, Salem and Alexander have a natural connection to Bryant because the children from those areas come to Bryant schools.
At 110 years of age, Bryant is on the cusp of its potential. Commerce is booming on the north side of town on 149 acres of newly developed land, and plans are being made for industrial and technological growth to take advantage of the new Saline County Regional Airport being built here on the south side of town. The airport is expected to open in 2006, with a 5,000-foot runway. It will cater to corporate and private jets.
Metroplan, the planning agency for local governments, has approved a plan to turn the abandoned Rock Island Railway line into a new transportation arterial into Little Rock. The new route will connect to Highway 183, Bryant's main traffic corridor, just outside the new airport.
Bryant has been named an Arkansas Community of Excellence — a communitythat works to plan for the future. "We love our city and want it to beeven better for all who choose to live and work here," says oneofficial at the Bryant Chamber of Commerce.
For more information:
www.salinecountyeconomicdevelopment.com
www.cityofbryant.org
www.bryant-ar.com