Jacksonville supports base area planning

The Jacksonville City Council on Thursday voted in support of a regional planning committee that would make recommendations on what can be built around Little Rock Air Force Base.

The committee would be made up of volunteers from cities in Pulaski, Faulkner, Lonoke and White counties.

Council members all voted in favor to form the committee.

Plans to form the committee came after a three-year land-use study to evaluate possible economic development around the air base.

Pulaski County Attorney Adam Fogleman said the city is "working with an eye toward the future."

"We are working to ensure that for the next 50 years, the areas around the Air Force base, as this community and as Pulaski County continues to grow -- that we have compatible uses so that we don't impair the mission and so that we're not subject to a base closure because of incompatible uses," he said.

Fogleman added that Jacksonville and the surrounding cities would be the first jurisdictional area to combine and form a committee voluntarily, which would set them apart and be something the Department of Defense looks for.

Mayor Bob Johnson said he was not surprised by the council's vote for the committee.

"This has been a long time coming," he said. "It is a tool that all cities can use and it's going to be beneficial to every city."

CORRECTION: Adam Fogleman is the attorney for Pulaski County. An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified Fogleman’s employer.

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