Its name is derived from the area's Shinall Mountain, but Deltic Timber Corporation (now PotlatchDeltic), a major early developer of the area, opted to alter the name to mimic French language as part of a strategy (known as foreign branding) to orient the residential and commercial development toward upper-class population segments.
[citation needed] The main thoroughfare is Chenal Parkway, mostly a divided four-lane path chiefly connecting Highway 10 to west Little Rock's Financial Centre business district.
Those first houses, as well as a limited number of apartment and condominium complexes, can be found scattered throughout wooded sections of Chenal Valley.
[citation needed] Several mass-market retailers populate Chenal's eastern commercial corridor near the Financial Centre area.
Its western commercial corridor boasts the Promenade at Chenal, which includes an IMAX theater, and major clothing retailers and stores.