If you’re interested, I’ve written a blog about my recent road trip across the Southwest (and then some).
www.duewest.marymrobbins.com
Check it out, if you’re so inclined.
A parking deck could be in Fayetteville’s near future if the city converted public and private parking lots in the downtown area to paid, Sharon Crosson, the parking and telecommunications manager, told aldermen on Tuesday night at the agenda session.
Three resolutions geared toward the entertainment district’s parking will be before the city council at next week’s meeting. The resolutions do not discuss specifics, such as citation fees or rates for parking, but rather are aimed to demonstrate the council’s strong intent to move forward in acquiescing private lots and switching existing free public parking to paid lots.
Don Marr, the mayor’s chief of staff, said they are taking this approach in seeking “strong intent” so that city staff does not devote researching and designing time to the project only to have an ordinance struck down by the council.
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A conditional-use permit for an animal boarding and training business was denied at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting in a 4-3 vote.
Barking Bed and Breakfast was planned for a 2-acre plot on Old Farmington Road, west of I-540 and Shiloh Drive. The business would have included dog boarding, daycare, grooming, pet portraits and a pet gift shop.
However, the new business would have been situated near hotels and a residential area. Neighbors spoke against granting the permit because of the potential noise and odor generated from the facility.
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In a vote 4-3, aldermen rejected the proposed rezoning for the sale barn property.
Council members Shirley Lucas, Sarah Lewis, Brenda Theil and Kyle Cook opposed the ordinance that would have designated the sale barn property as Downtown General instead of its current I-1 (Heavy Commercial/Light Industrial) zoning.
Alderman Robert Rhoads was at the meeting, but at the time of the vote, he was not present. After the ordinance failed, Rhoads said that he would have been in favor of the rezoning.
Click below for audio.
salebarn
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An ordinance that would place regulations on two quarries in West Fayetteville was delayed at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting to allow quarry operators and business stakeholders to weigh in on the stipulations.
Billy Sweetser, who co-owns Big Red Dirt Farm, said the ordinance could have a “massive financial impact” on his business, but said he had not been contacted by the city to discuss the new regulations intended for his quarry operation.
Click Below for an Audio Version of this story.
Ordinance for quarry regulations on hold
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Tony Johnson announced his retirement as Fayetteville’s fire chief at the City Council meeting on Tuesday night.
After his statement, Johnson received a standing ovation, led by Mayor Lioneld Jordan.
Johnson’s retirement will be effective on Oct. 10, he said, and his last duty as fire chief will coincide with the department’s annual pancake breakfast. Johnson has been in the fire service for 37 years and has served as fire chief in Fayetteville for four years.
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The Fayetteville City Council unanimously approved a resolution on Tuesday night endorsing medians on Garland Avenue when it is widened. Mayor Lioneld Jordan will take the agreed upon concept to the Arkansas Highway Department in Little Rock today.
The plan proposes four lanes and a continuous median in between, with strategic breaks for a fifth turn lane. And it will feature bike lanes and sidewalks on both sides of the street.
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Whenever I get a hold of a USA Today, I always flip to a section called “Across the USA,” where little nuggets of news are gathered from every state.
Well, in last week’s Tuesday’s edition, the news bite from Arkansas went a little something like this: Washington County could lose $1.9 million after the 2010 census, after a population projection showed that cities have grown more than unincorporated areas.
1.9 million dollars? Sounds serious. So, I looked into it a bit more and found an article from The Morning News that describes the decrease in revenue in more depth.
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The Fayetteville City Council approved renaming a roadway in west Fayetteville at Tuesday night’s meeting. West Salem Road will now be named West Weir Road. The change is logical because the street formerly changed names four times within a half-mile stretch, said John Goddard, who plans emergency service routes as the city’s GIS coordinator.
It would be better to change the name now, because in coming years, more addresses may crop up along the road, making it more difficult to change those addresses later, Goddard said.
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The City Council unanimously approved a plan at Tuesday night’s meeting, to build a water storage tower, not on Lot 22 as was first proposed, but on a nearby, more secluded plot of land atop the Hyland Park hill.
To change the location, Jim Waselues will pay the city $75,000 to buy a portion of Gary Combs’ land, and because the new piece of land is worth $200,000, Combs will donate the remaining $125,000 to the city. In turn, the city will turn over Lot 22 to Waseleus.
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