The city's planning and zoning commission are set for an eventful meeting on Tuesday, where they will consider the approval of five significant development permits, which include three new restaurants, an operations center for a community business as well as a sizable apartment complex.
The meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m. and this is one of the first times in recent months in which this amount of commercial development has been proposed. All of these proposals will be reviewed by the board on April 2, and listed below are summaries of each, along with some additional information.
Upcoming restaurants
Dairy Queen could soon be coming to Siloam Springs and it would be located at 102 Hwy. 412 E., according to a city staff report. It would be approximately 2,100 square feet and would be located where the White Oak gas station stood, which was demolished in 2010 and has not been occupied since then. The main entrance will be located on U.S. Highway 412 using the driveway that is currently there and there will be a drive-thru lane that will begin on the west side of the building and loop back around to the drive on the northern end.
Another restaurant that proposal is underway is Freddy's Frozen Custard and Steakburgers, which would be located on the 3500 Block of U.S. Highway 412, according to a city staff report. It will be about 2,800 square feet and would specifically be located directly east of Rib Crib. The primary entrance for the restaurant will be located to the west of the facility, which is also used by motorists entering the east entrance of Lowe's Home Improvement.
The third restaurant being proposed is Popeye's Chicken, which would also be located on the 3500 Block of U.S. Highway 412, according to a city staff report. It would be 3,200 square feet and would be located across the street from Rib Crib and east of Tractor Supply. Regarding accessibility, the applicant wants to use the driveway that is on the east side of Tractor Supply, in addition to constructing a new driveway that will run north and access U.S. Highway 412.
New apartment complex
Another significant development permit proposal pertains to a request to construct an apartment complex that would consist of a total of 80 dwelling units, according to a city staff report. The complex would total 81,450 square feet, would consist of four separate buildings, each of which would be located along the west side of Country Club Drive at the intersections 2200 E. Little John St., 2220 E. Sherwood St. and 2225 E. Sherwood St. This proposal was approved by the board in 2016 but since that time, it has been slightly amended to comply with the current municipal code.
It is also currently zoned as R-4 (residential, multi-family) and abuts either multi-family residential zones or county land in all four directions. Each building will be two and a half stories tall and have the capacity for 20 dwelling units each, with about seven units per floor, according to a city staff report. This is the maximum density that is permitted for these lots. Moreover, the project will be completed in three phases, a process that could take three to five years to complete.
Industrial development
Black Hills Energy, a natural gas and electricity utility service company that services customers in eight states, has requested to construct a nearly 11,000-square-foot facility that will be used as an operations center for a natural gas utility, according to a city staff report. The facility would be located on a 4.03 acre lot at 2250 N. Country Club Road, and will have parking spaces in the front and overflow parking and room for equipment storage in the back. The area's zoning is consistent with this use, as it is I-1 (industrial), as are the zones next to it in all directions.
In other business, the commission will consider:
• The decision to approve a rezone development permit for a 3.7 acre property located at 303 S. Country Club Road from I-2 (light industrial) to C-2 (roadway commercial).
• The decision to approve a lot-split development permit that is associated with the Black Hills Energy significant development proposal.
• The decision to approve a final plat development permit that is associated with the Popeye's Chicken significant development proposal and will subdivide the 9.35 acre property into three separate lots for the purpose of allowing future development to take place when the opportunity arises.
General News on 03/10/2019