Quality of Life

Cost of Living

The Fort Leonard Area has a Cost of Living Index of 80.3 and Cost of Housing Index of 80.7 as compared to Kansas City and St. Louis with a Cost of Living Index of 97.1 and 91.5 respectively.

Average Income

Along with a low cost of living, the St. Robert/Fort Leonard Wood median household income in 2007 was $40.729 per year. Fort Leonard Wood's impact on wages includes an average government service civilian salary of $41,000, average officer rank of Major with an average salary of $65,000 to 75,000 and average enlisted rank of staff sergeant with a salary of $33,000 to $35,000.

Major Employers

Fort Leonard Wood is the areas largest employer employing over 3,800 DOD Civilians, 5,400 other civilians (NAF, AAFES, Contractors, MWR), 7,100 permanent party military personnel and over 100,000 service members being trained annually at Fort Lenard Wood.

Other area employers include:

  • Ehrhardt Properties with 101 employees
  • Lowe's Home Improvement Store with 118 employees
  • Pulaski County with 100 employees
  • Walmart with 397 employees
  • Waynesville R-VI School District with 700 employees

Recreation

In 2009, the residents of St. Robert passed a 1/4 cent sales tax for the development of new park projects. In 2010, the city constructed a $3.4 million project Aquatics Facility which features both an outdoor and indoor pools. In addition to the aquatics facility, the city has a par-3, nine-hole course.

Transportation

St. Robert is bisected by Interstate 44 and provides access to the main gate of Fort Leonard Wood. Our location on I-44, gives us the ability to capture additional tourist traffic that are on their way or returning from a tourist site-such as Branson or St. Louis. The City is located at a good location roughly midway for traffic traveling to and from Branson or St. Louis and is becoming known as a stop over destination for meals and lodging when traveling on I-44. Nearby, the Waynesville-St. Robert Regional Airport has full ILS support and is one of the best regional airports in the state.

Over 26,000 cars per day travel Missouri Avenue in St. Robert and over 33,000 cars per day travel I-44. View the 2013 Traffic Count (PDF).

Education

St. Robert is in the Waynesville R-6 School District, which consistently ranks among the top school districts in the state. The District has recently constructed a new state of the art high school and hosts a Technical Academy which serves the entire county with a wide range of technical and skill-oriented courses.

Public Schools

  • Waynesville R-VI School District
  • Classification: Accredited with distinction in Performance
  • Enrollment Phone: 573-842-2094

Vocational Schools

  • Waynesville Technical Academy

Universities & Colleges

  • Central Texas College
  • Columbia College
  • Drury University
  • Lincoln University
  • Park University