SPRINGDALE -- The city is in the process of selling land that once belonged to the city of Bethel Heights and accepting a donation of land in southeast Springdale for a new fire station.
The Springdale City Council approved both measures during its meeting Dec. 14.
Guadalupe Masonry Homes, owned by Manuel Nava, will buy 1.38 acres of land at 219 E. Apple Blossom Ave. and Lincoln Drive for $150,000, said Wyman Morgan, the city's director of finance and administration. The property was appraised for $165,000, according to city documents.
Nava said Tuesday he is considering building office space for his business. The land is zoned for low-density residential use, and Nava would have to request the city rezone the land for commercial use, said Debbie Pounders, an administrative assistant with the Springdale Planning Department.
The property lies due north of the building that held the city hall of Bethel Heights. The defunct city owned the city hall, the parking lot directly north of it, and a lot and house directly north of the parking lot, said Ernest Cate, Springdale city attorney. Nava will buy the latter.
All property owned by Bethel Heights became property of the city of Springdale in August 2020 when the smaller town was annexed into Springdale.
This is the first piece of property formerly owned by Bethel Heights that Springdale has sold, although others have expressed interest in some of the properties, Morgan said. The council last month approved a two-year lease with the Northwest Arkansas Food Bank for the former city hall building. The food bank will use the building for office space and pay the city with $1,000 worth of food a month for the city's Senior Center.
Brothers Darin and Kevin Riggins of Riggins Construction came to the city wanting to donate land for a new fire station, said Mayor Doug Sprouse. The fire station will be named in honor of the late Clifford "Slim" Riggins, a former Springdale firefighter and the Riggins' grandfather, Kevin Riggins said in an email.
The city will get just over 6 acres at the southeast intersection of Habberton Road and Horn Lane for the fire station. The land is in two lots of Phase 2 of the Habberton Ridge subdivision where hundreds of single-family homes are planned, Cate said.
The land has not been appraised, he said.
"Everyone expects that area to grow pretty fast," Cate said. "That would be a good location to help cover that southeastern part of town."
The C.L. "Charlie" and Willie George Park sits west of the roundabout at Habberton and Horn. The Springdale Public Schools has built schools of all levels in the area. Hundreds of single-family and multifamily homes are planned for the area, Cate said.
Sprouse said construction of the fire station might be presented to voters as part of a 2023 bond program. The department opened Station 9 this summer. The new station would be 11 or 12 but also carry the name of Riggins, Sprouse said.
"He was the most dedicated fireman," retired Springdale Fire Chief Mickey Jackson said of Riggins. Jackson worked with Riggins starting in the 1960s. "He was an old guy who just found himself when he became a fireman," Jackson continued. "He was just eaten up with being a fireman."
Jackson said Riggins could be remembered for working to improve the Fire Department and improve himself. The tall, lanky firefighter spent his off days at the station helping the on-duty crew or sitting in a class.
Jackson said he also remembered Riggins as being loyal. When Jackson was first hired as chief, he was worried what the firefighters would think about somebody coming from out of state to be their chief. Jackson said he was working an unrelated job in Tulsa.
"But Riggins accepted me and had such an influence over the rest of the firemen that they accepted me, too," Jackson said.
Riggins was promoted to captain and shift commander at the same time Jackson was hired in 1964.
Riggins' son, John Riggins, also served as a Springdale firefighter, Jackson said.
Darin and Kevin Riggins' father, Jim Riggins, drove an ambulance for the department, Kevin Riggins said.