BENTONVILLE -- Minimum lot widths, alley standards, architectural management and minimum setbacks are some items city planning staff will seek interim recommendations on in the comprehensive planning process.
Houseal Lavigne, the firm designing the Bentonville Community Plan, is expected to have recommendations for staff and the Planning Commission to review by Nov. 17.
"Whatever we do, if we choose to do anything, we need to do so keeping in mind that we need to protect what we believe adds value to our community in downtown Bentonville," Troy Galloway, community and economic development director, told planning commissioners earlier this week. "What we don't want to do is do anything that is going to detract from that, because that's essentially gotten us to where we are today."
Planning staff and commissioners have discussed over the last few months the need to update standards and regulations for new housing developments downtown as the area grows. The community plan will offer solutions, but isn't scheduled to be completed for another 15 months. Officials say they will seek solutions that can be used between now and then.
Staff, commissioners, a couple Board of Adjustment members and one City Council member continued the conversation at a work session Tuesday.
It's important to identify what area the interim solutions would apply to before identifying what they are, said Joe Haynie, planning commissioner.
"If we're going to do an overlay, then where is it going to be?" he said.
Officials decided it would include the area south of Tiger Boulevard and north of Southwest 14th Street, east of Walton Boulevard and west of J Street. It was important to include the area between Eighth Street and Southwest 14th Street. It's not a hot spot for development now, but is anticipated to become one, they said.
There was discussion on the possibility of setting a minimum lot width of 50 feet to help reach a density "sweet spot" that provides a certain amount of desired density without an area becoming too dense.
There are some areas where narrower lots, such as 32 to 35 feet wide, work well. Such as in the southwest part of downtown, said Rod Sanders, planning commissioner.
"It's been successful. It looks good," he said.
There's a chance setting a minimum lot width could slow development, Haynie said. A minimum 50-foot lot width reduces a developer's ability to split a single family lot multiple times, which is needed for them to make up what they spend to buy the land.
Officials also discussed the need for neighborhoods to keep their feel and character.
Rick Rogers, Board of Adjustment member, asked if architectural control could be part of the overlay.
"That's part of the whole feel of the neighborhood," he said. "It's not just the density, but what does it look like?"
There was discussion, too, about requiring development plans for smaller projects.
That level of regulation seems premature at this point, but will likely be addressed in the plan, Galloway said. However, Galloway included "architectural management" in the list of interim solution priorities to discuss with Houseal Lavinge.
Houseal Lavigne's interim recommendations are supposed to be "stop gap measure" and not a permanent solution, Galloway said.
NW News on 10/30/2015