Despite overwhelming public opposition, the city board unanimously approved preliminary and final plat development permits for a proposed residential development that would consist of 60 homes in a vacant lot on the north side of the 23000 Block of Lawlis Road.
The vote took place toward the end of their meeting on Tuesday and this has been anticipated as the board approved a preliminary plat for it in February 2018 and a final plat development permit for it in October 2018, according to a city staff report. In these original plats, the plan was to construct 30, single-family homes, but due to unforeseen costs, the applicant requested to alter the original plats to increase the density from 30 single-family homes to 60 homes on 30, two-family lots.
Due to this request, the city asked the applicant, Riggins Construction to obtain a new preliminary and final plat permit, according to a city staff report. The property in question is 14.25 acres and is located on county land, and because of this the applicant has agreed to sign a pre-annexation agreement in the event that the city wishes to annex the property at some point moving forward.
Since it is on county land, it is not zoned, according to a city staff report. Due to this, the city does not have the authority to regulate the use of developments in the county, and this is why the applicant was able to increase the density without having to overcome the obstacles that would have been faced if this were taking place in city limits.
This consideration prompted a number of complaints from members of the audience in Tuesday's meeting, who cited concerns ranging from increased traffic, to drainage issues or possible decreases in property values. One of these residents was Barry Campbell, who said he believes that the development will cause crime to increase, and also cited general concerns about the area's growth.
"The duplexes have kind of thrown us off a little bit," Campbell said. "My concern is the crime rate, there's going to be more crime out there, more people, more breaking in and stealing stuff. But if you look at the plat, the roads don't come to a dead-end, they're ready to expand. They're going to go to the left and they're going to go to the right, it's just going to grow more. It's not stopping here."
The houses will not change significantly in terms of appearance, only their density, Senior City Planner Ben Rhoads said. In addition, the applicant is required to construct an emergency access lane due to the density increase, per the provisions of the Arkansas State Fire Prevention Code.
Mayor John Turner said that while he appreciates the public engagement and stressed the importance of public participation when dealing with issues like this, that the city is limited in its ability to remedy many of the problems that were expressed because the area isn't annexed into city limits. Ward 2 Director Brad Burns agreed with this and said that annexation offers protections and benefits that are not afforded to county residents.
"It seems like we're fighting each other in some means, because the city of Siloam Springs is growing, (and) I would only encourage annexation," Burns said. "Within annexation, property values get protected. There will be development in the county, and the best we can do is as you read through this, we provide certain things in case (county residents) ever decide to annex. ... I can't encourage folks enough to join the city of Siloam Springs."
TAP grant
The final agenda item of the night was the board's acceptance of a $405,000 Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant from the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT) and the Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission (NWARPC). Of this amount, ARDOT contributed $155,000 and the NWARPC contributed $250,000, according to a city staff report.
The grant will be used to help fund a 10-foot-wide sidepath that will run between Cheri Whitlock Drive and the entrance to the Dogwood Springs Trail on North Hico Street. Another part of the project will include a pedestrian bridge that will extend across Sager Creek and it will appear similar to that of the bridge at the intersection of Washington Street and Tahlequah Street, according to a city staff report.
The grant will also not cover the total cost of the project, which is estimated at $507,000. For that reason, it is a matching grant that will cover 80 percent of funding while the city will pay for the remaining 20 percent, or $102,000, according to a city staff report. In order to meet the TAP grant deadlines, the project will need to be designed and submitted for bids by the end of the summer and construction will begin sometime later this year, City Engineer Justin Bland said.
In other business, the board:
• Unanimously approved a purchase request from the public works department for a front-end loader from Scott Equipment in the amount of $170,298.10.
• Unanimously adopted an ordinance that will amend a section of the city code in order to include provisions relating to "5G" wireless internet technology.
• Unanimously adopted an ordinance that will rezone a .53 acre property located at 992 S. Lincoln St. from C-2 (roadway commercial) to R-3 (residential, two-family).
• Unanimously adopted an ordinance that will amend a section of the city code pertaining to the naming and numbering of city streets and buildings.
• Unanimously adopted an ordinance that will annex into city limits 20.707 acres of county land located at 3755 E. Kenwood St.
• Unanimously adopted an ordinance that will rezone a 4.02 acre property located on the 100 Block of North Lincoln Street from I-2 (light industrial) to C-2 (roadway commercial) and R-3 (residential, two-family).
• Unanimously approved the decision to place an ordinance on its first reading that would correct a textual error in the city zoning code.
• Unanimously approved the decision to place an ordinance on its first reading that would authorize a $1.9 million sole-source purchase that will transition the city's radio system to the Arkansas Wireless Information Network, or AWIN.
• Unanimously approved a resolution to authorize a significant development permit that will allow for the construction of two, approximately 4,500-square-foot multi-family dwelling units that will include a total of 8 units.
The next city board meeting will take place at 6:30 p.m. March 19 at City Hall, and the planning and zoning commission will meet at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 12, at City Hall. Both meetings are open to the public and for questions, comments or concerns, visit siloamsprings.com or call 479-524-5136.
General News on 03/10/2019