Painting a community picture by the numbers

Numbers have always fascinated me. I’m amazed by things such as if you line up every person in the world how far would they reach (4.3 million miles, about 175 times around the equator), or how many species of mosquitoes there are (3,000 species, and Louisiana is the most mosquito-prone state).

I find it interesting to read census results about how much a community has grown, or declined, the number of married people it has, how many single-family houses there are, and the general demographics of an area. You can find data about practically anything in the world and today’s technology makes it somewhat easy to track such information.

In my days as an ink-stained wretch, we kept up with numbers and statistics and shared them with our readers so they could have a better understanding about our community. There are many sources for such data, like the federal census, state agencies, and private organizations. You can even get data about different countries from the CIA’s website.

This week I heard about an organization called Aspire Arkansas that collects and shares data about Arkansas. Naturally, I had to visit its website and look through the numbers. According to Aspire Arkansas’s homepage, its information can help determine where to send charitable support, what needs you can help fulfill.

Or you can be nosy like me and just want to see how your area stacks up and compares to others in the state. It covers different indicators, such as education, families, health, demographics, and racial equity. Besides, I needed a column idea this week, and this seemed like an interesting one.

Going through various listings at Aspire Arkansas, I checked information about Baxter and Marion counties to see where we stand. As with other organizations and agencies, their most recent data isn’t in real time. Most of it is up to 2019 to 2022 in a couple of instances, which is close for government work. Since the site is geared to help make decisions for charitable giving, I focused on family topics and social considerations, areas where folks make contributions.

According to Aspire Arkansas, as of 2019, Baxter County’s population was 41,932, 9.3 percent higher than the previous counting. Marion County had 16,694 people, a 3.4 percent increase. Arkansas itself showed a population right at 3 million, a 12.9 percent increase, making it 29 out of 51. Aspire includes Washington, D.C., with the 50 states, hence 51.

Median income in Baxter County is $42,260 and $36,719 in Marion County. Arkansas’s median income is $47,597, which is 49th of 51. Only Mississippi and West Virginia have lower median incomes.

Of Baxter County’s 41,932 residents, 13 percent live in poverty, a little more than 5,450 people. Marion County had 18 percent of its population in poverty, approximately 3,005 people. That compares to 17 percent of Arkansans in poverty and 13 percent of Americans. The poverty threshold is $13,778 annual income for an individual under 65 to $27,479 for a family of four with two children younger than 18.

As a retirement area, 9 percent of Baxter County’s elderly live in poverty while 10 percent in Marion County are poverty stricken. Ten percent of Arkansas’ elderly are in poverty while nationally it is 9 percent. In Baxter County, 18 percent of children are in poverty while the rate is 25 percent in Marion County. Twenty-five percent of Arkansas’s children live in poverty making it 45th out of 51 nationally, which has 19 percent of children in poverty.

Food insecurity is at 16 percent of Baxter County’s population and 18 percent in Marion County. That compares to 17 percent in Arkansas and 11 percent nationally.

Of course, if you want to put a positive spin on some of these then 87 percent of Baxter County’s population and 82 percent of Marion County’s do not live below the poverty level, although some still may have a hard time getting by. Eighty-four percent of Baxter Countians are getting enough to eat while 82 percent in Marion County have food security,

According to Aspire Arkansas, Baxter and Marion counties have the least affordable housing ratio in the state. Baxter County has a 3.2 ratio for housing affordability while Marion County’s rate is 3.3 ratio (second only to Washington County with 3.4). Housing affordability is determined with the median home value divided by median household income. A ratio less than 2 or 3 is considered affordable.

Statewide, the housing affordability ratio is 2.7, compared to 3.5 nationally. Owning a house seems to be getting less affordable everywhere.

Renting isn’t much more affordable. In Baxter County, 27 percent of renters’ household income goes into paying rent. In Marion County it’s 39 percent. According to the Housing and Urban Development Department, for affordability rent should be no more than 30 percent of household income. Statewide rent is 29 percent of household income, and it's 31 percent nationally.

While these figures may not be as much fun as lining up everyone in the world or knowing how many different kinds of skeeters there are, they do serve a good purpose. Such data gives us an idea of how we’re doing as a community. It points out areas where life isn’t free Bubble-Up and rainbow stew for many of our neighbors. This type of information can help individuals, groups, even local governments decide where they need to help people if they can.

It’s still fun to ponder what happens if that line of the world’s population encounters those 3,000 varieties of mosquitoes, though.