Mayor Noel Foster took office in 2011, and before that, he served as the city’s Police Chief. During an Arkansas Good Roads Magazine interview, he said, “White Hall has dramatically changed over the last two decades.”

He points to the construction of Interstate 530 in the late 1990s, coupled with the former administration’s strategic planning around that road construction, as having had a “major impact” on the city’s growth. The interstate paved the way for business opportunities like hotels, gas stops, and, at first, fast-food restaurants and convenience stores. However, it’s now a hub of extended-stay facilities, corporate headquarters, various sit-down eateries, and a half-dozen new banks, food markets, and retail shops.

Sheridan Road is so busy that businesses like White Hall Fresh Market and Sylvia’s Pizzeria are opening on the Pine Bluff side of the street, where the two towns join, about a mile east of Exit 34. Both business owners considered it a prime location.

A Small Town on the Grow

I-30’s Exit 34 wasn’t much more than a gas station and a few fast-food options back then. Still, when former White Hall Mayor James “Jitters” Morgan, now deceased, talked of the benefits of a business located there, he touted White Hall’s proximity to the interstate, running just west of town, as easy and quick access to the state’s major north-south and east-west interstates, the state Capitol and the Little Rock airport, and transportation options that include truck, rail, and river.

While its population has slowly increased, numerous large and small companies saw it as an opportunity. They built or relocated there, and it was a plus for the Pine Bluff Arsenal as they started destroying the nation’s chemical stockpile stored there.

Better roads and infrastructure in this area have made it easier for traffic to get to the historic Pine Bluff Arsenal, just across the city line from White Hall. For several years, political and community leadership in White Hall have been thoughtfully evaluating how better infrastructure drives the local economy.

An Asphalt Lifeline

As many Pine Bluff employers shuttered their businesses in the 1990s and 2000s and Southeast Arkansas’s largest city’s population continued to shrink, losing about 10,000 residents from 2010 to 2020, it could have crippled White Hall, Foster said. But people who once looked for work in Pine Bluff suddenly realized that a twenty-minute drive to Little Rock made employment a viable option while continuing to live in White Hall.

The easy drive gave people a more comprehensive array of employment options and kept many people from leaving the city, while others, such as Doris Golden, saw White Hall as a place to aspire to live.

It continues to rank as one of Arkansas’s top cities, ranking low in crime and high in public school quality, and Foster said, “We’re focusing on improving the quality of life for our residents.”

Golden is Jefferson County 911 Operation Manager who moved to White Hall four years ago. It was her dream, she said, adding, “I love the feel of the close-knit community. It’s quiet, serene.”
New home starts have been brisk over the last few years, and Foster added, “Right now, I have a proposal for a 10-home mini subdivision on my desk.”

Two years ago, Foster asked Golden to serve on the city’s Planning Commission. Golden said, “It was something I was interested in pursuing. I see it as a very exciting time in White Hall. Growth is happening at a rapid pace.”
She and others would like to see the opening of a big box store like Walmart or Target. 

A Roadwork in Progress

Times have changed, and according to 2022 traffic count numbers, I-530’s exit 34 accommodated about 27,000 vehicles per day, making it one of Jefferson County’s busiest intersections. In part, it prompted ARDOT to realize the crucial need to widen Sheridan Road, and Foster added, “This area is one of the most congested areas in the city.”

The widening of Sheridan Road will extend approximately two miles on either side of Interstate 530, exit 34. It will extend from the intersection of U.S. Hwy. 270 and Ark. Hwy. 365-S to Arkansas Hwy. 104 to Hwy. 365. The existing two-lane roadway will be widened to four lanes with a center turn lane, and curbs, gutters, storm drains, and sidewalks will be added along both sides of the highway. In 2022, ARDOT estimated the project would cost about $20 million.

“It’s expected to alleviate the traffic problem in this area,” and Foster sees it as an opportunity for additional growth. The widening and sidewalks will change the whole area, and Foster said it’s been instrumental in convincing businesses to invest in this area.

Growing North

What sets the hospital opening apart is its location. Most of the recent growth has taken place on the more southwestern end of town, but it’s located on the northwestern end at I-530’s Exit 32.

The exit has long served the Pine Bluff Arsenal and now the White Hall School District’s high school. Traffic is congested before and after school, but nothing like after football games or graduation. But unlike Exit 34, it’s seen less development. White Hall City Council Member David Beck said that “may change.”

The hospital is expected to employ as many as 200 people, and that doesn’t include visitors. The Jefferson Regional White Hall complex is also home to the Jefferson Regional Wellness Center, which houses
a workout facility, breast center, and more. Nearby property is zoned commercial, and the city has already
had inquiries about building there.

“White Hall is coming into its own,” Beck said. He has served on White Hall’s City Council since 2001, and he currently serves as Co-Chairman of the Military Affairs Advisory Committee (MAAC), an Economic Alliance of Jefferson County Board Member, and a Chamber Member. He said it didn’t happen overnight and credits I-530 as a critical factor.

“Good roads are critical to economic development, and their importance can’t be overstated. Without them, an area can’t be economically viable,” Beck said.

A Final Note

Morgan also saw Interstate 530 as a growth opportunity for the city, and it did. The initial growth was instrumental in funding a sizeable modern community center, growing the city park and a sports complex, and eventually opening the Crenshaw Springs Water Park. It now attracts folks from around the state and surrounding states and fills its hotels and restaurants.

Beck said, “The highway department laid the roadwork for much of this growth.” Foster is quick to point out that Morgan and the Council Members took advantage of the economic and growth opportunities afforded to the city. Foster added, “They laid the foundation for the boom we’re experiencing now. We’re building on their legacy.”