BENTONVILLE -- Benton County planners on Wednesday approved plans for an emergency services station proposed by Carroll Electric on company property near Gravette.
The board discussed the site plan for the station during the Technical Advisory Committee portion of its Sept. 2 meeting and held a public hearing on the proposal Wednesday.
Wastewater ordinance
Benton County planners heard an update Wednesday on the proposed ordinance requiring inspection of septic systems when property is sold or transferred. John Sudduth, general services administrator, told the Planning Board the ordinance was discussed by justices of the peace at a Committee of the Whole meeting and sent back to the Legislative Committee for study. The board has unanimously endorsed the proposed ordinance. Sudduth said he’s gathering information from the justices of the peace on questions or concerns they have about the ordinance
Source: Staff report
Mike Jorgenson of Carroll Electric said the facility will be built on 22.24 acres at the northeast corner of Arkansas 59 and Mount Olive Road between Gravette and Decatur. He said it will be an emergency service center for Carroll Electric to provide a quick response during inclement weather.
The 18,500 square-foot building will have offices for two or three employees on normal business days, with office hours of 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The 18,500 square-foot building will have 14 indoor truck bays, two outdoor fuel storage tanks and a refueling area, and outdoor storage for electric poles and other material. The facility will not be open for customers to pay their bills.
At the initial review, the board questioned Jorgenson about landscape buffers for neighboring residences, drainage on the site and whether water pressure from a proposed six-inch water line extension will be adequate for fire protection purposes. All of those issues were resolved and the board voted unanimously to approve the project.
Robert Smith, a resident of Mount Olive Road, asked the board about access to and from the site. Smith said the intersection of Mount Olive Road and Arkansas 59 had been the scene of three fatality accidents and he was concerned about adding a number of larger trucks to the traffic in the area.The board discussed the access, with driveways on both Mount Olive Road and Arkansas 59, and was satisfied the location could handle the proposed traffic. Mark Curtis, board chairman, suggested it might be appropriate to place rumble strips on the roads leading up to the intersection.
The board also reviewed a request to change the landscape plan approved last year for the Barnett Warehouse project at 211153 S. Arkansas 16 near Siloam Springs. The initial plan was approved after a lengthy and contentious hearing at which many nearby residents objected to the 67,950 square-foot warehouse being built so close to their homes.
"When we approved this project the neighbors were very vociferous in their opposition and in their desire that there be a landscaping buffer," Curtis said during the discussion. "They came in as a neighborhood and we need to make sure we're protecting the neighborhood as best we can."
The requested change would eliminate a buffer on the east side of the property, which faces the Dayspring Cards plant, and alter the buffer on the south side between the warehouse and the residences. The proposed new southern buffer would be on a taller earthen berm but would have different plants and trees and have a gap in the plantings in the center of the berm.
The board members questioned leaving some space without trees and other landscaping, pointing to a residence south of that area that might have a unobstructed view of the warehouse if trees on an intervening parcel were cut down in the future. The board also questioned the choice of landscaping with Curtis saying the county encourages the use of native plantings as much as possible. The warehouse plan will be back for a public hearing at the board's next meeting Oct. 7.
Also Wednesday, the board held preliminary reviews of two requests to amend previously approved development plans. One request, for the Silica Valley Storage, south of Arkansas 12 off Pollock Road, for for an expansion that had been submitted in 2006 but never pursued. The board told Julie Gall, the property owner, she will need to obtain approval of a setback variance for one of the original buildings, which was built too close to the property line, and another variance from parking requirements.
Otherwise, the plan is adding about 10,608 square feet of new storage buildings to the 16,000 square feet of storage now on site. The expansion plan will be back for a public hearing at the board's Oct. 7 meeting.
NW News on 09/17/2015