LITTLE ROCK — Central Arkansas Water didn’t commit any violations regarding plans yet to be approved for a pump station in the Maumelle Watershed, the Pulaski County Planning Board determined Tuesday.
Confusion over whether the Planning Board’s approval in June granting the utility a right-of-way variance for the pump station that also included final approval for a site plan led to complaints that the utility wasn’t following county regulations for the watershed.
The board didn’t take any further action on the matter after a lengthy discussion.
“At this point, all we can do is look forward,” board Chairman Ray Vogelpohl said.
Proposed land-use regulations by the utility, aimed at protecting Lake Maumelle, central Arkansas’ primary water source, would keep development in check to guard against more pollutants entering the stormwater runoff and draining into the lake.
Van McClendon, the county’s planning director, told the board that a site plan had been submitted because of the variance request for 5 feet of right of way on the east side of Arkansas 113 for the pump station, which hasn’t been built.
Graham Rich, the utility’s chief executive officer, told the board that the utility considered the application a “two-step process” that included coming back with a final site plan for county planning staff review.
“We knew this wasn’t a final site plan,” Rich said.
Kent Walker, attorney for property owners in the watershed, disagreed, claiming “15 to 20 violations” by the utility according to the county’s Subdivision Ordinance from 2009. His concern, he added, is that landowners would be held to rules the utility may have broken.
“The overseeing organizations should be held to higher standards,” Walker said.
McClendon countered that there were no violations because planning staff still must sign off on a final site plan.
Property owner Lorie White told the board that the utility is “supposed to be setting the example for us
... They say it was an oversight. I personally don’t think it was.”
Rich said the utility is “going to make it right” and appreciated that the issues were brought to its attention.
“This is an awkward way to come out of the gate,” Rich said, adding later that “had we known these would be looked at simultaneously, we would have held off on it [the variance]. We will set the standards.”
Arkansas, Pages 10 on 07/25/2012