Hayes Street

Hayes Street is the name originally given to the road now known as University Avenue in Little Rock. Hayes remained unpaved into the 1950s, but by February 1961 when it was widened to a paved boulevard with four lanes and mercury vapor lights it had become the second-highest traffic counts in the city.

The decision to pave the road with asphalt in the late 1950s was made by County Judge Arch Campbell. The road almost immediately became characterized by what local leaders called "sprawl" and "blight" due to unplanned and uncontrolled growth of six shopping centers and many other stand-alone businesses in the late 1950s and 1960s.

References

• "Avenue Woes Laid to Lack of Planning," Arkansas Gazette, February 2, 1961.
• Matilda Tuohey, "University Avenue Has Developed into Cinderella Street of Little Rock," Arkansas Gazette, December 30, 1962.