LIVE UPDATES: Fayetteville City Council recap: Jan. 7, 2020

Notes:
Everyone voted for Mark Kinion. He replaces Sarah Marsh, who served in 2019. It’s Kinion’s 4th time as vice mayor. He also held the position in 2014, 2015 and 2018.

Background:
This request was separated from an item that was left on the second reading at the Dec. 3 meeting that also included the adoption of a revised Master Street Plan.

The part of the plan that is up for debate is a planned trail through the Brooks-Hummel nature preserve behind Evelyn Hills Shopping Center.

The city owns the preserve, and the Fayetteville Natural Heritage Association oversees a conservation easement which was established in 2008 to protect the area from ever being developed. Despite the easement, city staff said the agreement includes a clause that allows for a trail to be built through the preserve since a trail connection has been in the city’s master plans since 2003.

The planned trail would run from Mission Boulevard near North Street along Sublett Creek to the intersection of North College Avenue and Poplar Street. It’s a fairly flat route surrounded by steep topography, so staff believe it’s primed for a trail corridor, but those who are against it believe the trail clause was only intended to provide for a natural surface walking trail and not for a portion of the city’s trail system.

Those who have spoken in favor said they did so because of the safety and connectivity it would offer, and the positive exposure it could bring to both the preserve and the city.

City staff said the trail isn’t scheduled for construction for at least the next 5-6 years, so they’ve designated it as an “alignment study area” to try and find a plan that suits everyone. Ideas floated include boardwalks over sensitive areas instead of the city’s standard 12-foot paved trails.

Here’s a map of the proposed Sublett Creek Trail:

Dec. 17 Discussion:
Council member Sloan Scroggin said he’s seen the alternative routes to the trail and he doesn’t think they’re viable options for an east-west connection. He said he believes a trail would bring more attention to the preserve and that it could lead to improvements to the area.

Marsh said a trail that bisects her property in south Fayetteville offers a connection to nature that wasn’t previously available. She said it has led to a more healthy lifestyle, and a trail through the preserve could offer the same benefits.

Jan. 7 Discussion:
Matt Mihalevich, the city’s trails coordinator, gave a brief presentation about the plan, and highlighted some points about the planned Sublett Creek Trail. He said once complete, the trail will include a signaled crossing at North College Avenue and Poplar Street to meet up with existing on- and off-street infrastructure that connects to the remainder of the city’s trail system.

At least 17 people spoke during public comment.

Many people had concerns about the impact of a trail on the preserve, and said if a trail is built, they’d prefer an alternative to the standard, 12-foot paved path. A few people who live near Brooks-Hummel said they don’t want any kind of trail through the area at all.

Several people said the city should keep the trail in the master plan because an east-west connector is needed in this area. One person said bike and pedestrian trips to the west side of College Avenue would be safer without riding on the streets, and with a dedicated crossing signal. Another person said more people moving through the area would increase positive awareness of the preserve.

Scroggin said he’s received more emails in the past few days from people who are in favor of the trail than from people who are against it. He said he likes the idea of a raised boardwalk trail through Brooks-Hummel instead of a paved path. He said people who can’t afford a car need safe ways to get around town, and the Sublett Creek corridor would serve that portion of the population.

Turk said the city needs to preserve the area as much as possible, and moved to amend the master plan to remove Sublett Creek Trail. She said the corridor should continue to be designated as a study area. Kinion seconded the motion.

Smith said he thinks the connection is important, but he isn’t too concerned about whether it stays on the master plan right now or if it’s removed and brought back later. He said after ample study, he believes a plan can be created that addresses everyone’s concerns.

City Attorney Kit Williams said the council has the flexibility to build the trail in any way it wishes. For example, the trail could be a hard surface or soft surface. It could have some lighting or none at all. It could be more or less wide than other parts of the trail system. He said it would be at least five years before the trail could be funded for constructed.

Bunch said with so many options for how a trail could be built, and so much time to come up with a solution, she thinks the trail should stay in the master plan.

Petty said removing the trail from the plan would be nothing more than a temporary gesture. He said the idea has already been vetted and approved multiple times by several committees. He said if the city is to continue its efforts to combat climate change, it must adapt to growth and provide alternative transportation routes.

Gutierrez said the trail should stay in the plan, but the area should be heavily studied to ensure it’s preserved as much as possible when a trail is eventually built.

Turk’s motion failed.

Kinion said regardless of the obvious impending decision to keep the trail in the master plan, he’s relieved to know that at least some awareness has been brought to the area, and he hopes that will lead to a good solution for how a trail is eventually built.

Decision:
During the final vote, the master plan was approved 6-2 with Turk and Kinion voting against. Sublett Creek Trail will stay in the plan.

Background:
This request was separated from an item that was left on the second reading at the Dec. 3 meeting that also included the approval of the Active Transportation Plan Map.

Dec. 17 Discussion:
There was no public comment about the street plan, which is why it was separated from the trail plan item to be voted on separately.

Jan. 7 Discussion:
Since the last meeting, some public comments have been made against the master plan’s goal of connecting South Sang Avenue to North Sang Avenue.

City staff said it’s an important connection, but nothing is set in stone. It’s not anticipated that the street would be built by the city, but rather by a developer whenever the private property is eventually built upon.

What’s proposed is a Neighborhood Link (Minor Arterial/Collector Street) with a 55-67 feet of right-of-way that includes 8 feet of pedestrian and bike infrastructure on each side of the road with three vehicle traffic lanes.

An alternative option is to downgrade it to a Residential Link (Local and Residential Streets) with 33-40 feet of right-of-way that includes a 6-foot sidewalk on just one side of the road. This option would still have room for three vehicle lanes, but the street would be three feet narrower.

A third option is to remove the connection completely and leave both sections of Sang Avenue as dead-end roads.

Those speaking against the connection say it would add more traffic which would be dangerous, that the urban forest would be negatively impacted by a street connection, and that more cars and people passing through the area would ruin the character of the University Heights/Haskell Heights/Sang area neighborhoods.

Petty said he prefers the second option (Residential Link) to ensure vehicles are traveling slower through the area. Scroggin agreed, and said this connection is too important to be scrapped.

Turk said even if it’s downgraded to a Residential Link, she believes that the traffic numbers will still be high because UA students will cut through the area and that the neighborhood will eventually be destroyed. She moved to amend the resolution to completely remove the connection from the Master Street Plan. Kinion seconded the motion.

Petty said suggesting that a neighborhood would be “destroyed” by a street is unwarranted, but he does think the narrower option is better for the area and that if Turk’s motion fails, he’ll move to downgrade the connection plan.

Gutierrez said she’d support more bicycle traffic through the area, but not more vehicles so she’ll vote in favor of Turk’s motion.

Marsh said while it’s true the connection would add more traffic, it could create more housing options in the area, which would be wise considering the university is the city’s largest employer.

Turk’s motion was approved, with Gutierrez, Kinion, Turk and Smith voting in favor of removing the connection. With a 4-4 tie, Mayor Jordan chose to cast the tie-breaker vote in favor of the amendment.

Decision:
In the final vote, the resolution was approved 8-0.

Background:
This item was brought forward by Council Member Kyle Smith.

The Cultural Arts Corridor project calls for removal of the parking lot at West Avenue and Dickson Street across from the Walton Arts Center. Mayor Jordan promised he would replace the 298 parking spaces that would be lost with a new parking deck somewhere in the Dickson Street area.

City staff were presented five locations, but narrowed them to three: The privately-owned parking lot at the northwest corner of Dickson and West Avenue that’s home to businesses like Bank of Fayetteville’s train bank and Arsaga’s at the Depot (Depot Lot); the city-owned parking lot next to Kingfish on School Avenue (East Lot); and the property currently home to Nadine Baum Studios across from TheatreSquared

City staff have since removed the Nadine Baum option from the list after City Attorney Kit Williams said there’s no way the site could be used for a new deck without replacing the existing building, which staff have estimated would cost about $8 million. With voters only approving a total of $10 million for the deck, the location simply isn’t feasible, Williams said.

Also, because the city and University of Arkansas jointly own the property and building, Williams said the UA would have to agree to removing the building for a parking deck. He said Mayor Jordan has discussed the idea with the university’s chancellor several times, who “unequivocally” rejected any use of the property for a city parking deck.

Smith’s resolution asks that all three sites still be considered, and that a public discussion of the matter be heard.

“I understand (the Nadine Baum lot) has got challenges, but I think it would be helpful for the public to see those outlined if it ends up not being the way we go, and for everybody to know that we gave it full consideration,” Smith told the council at last week’s agenda-setting session.

Dec. 17 Discussion:
Smith said there are obviously many questions about how the Nadine Baum site could be used, and while it may seem like a foregone conclusion that it’s an impossibility to build a deck on the property, he wants to be sure before completely tossing out the idea. He said if this conversation had taken place sooner, the options might not currently be so limited.

Marsh said the council should consider that the Fayetteville Housing Authority has offered to partner with the city to develop the Nadine Baum site, which could lower the city’s cost and include liner buildings with opportunities to build mixed-income housing.

Jordan said it might be best to discuss this resolution along with the next item since they both concern parking deck locations, and the two conversations will most certainly overlap (see below for more).

The council eventually voted 8-0 to table both resolutions until Jan. 7.

Jan. 7 Discussion:
Smith said in light of recent comments from city officials and representatives from the Walton Arts Center and University of Arkansas, he’s decided to amend his resolution to remove consideration of the Nadine Baum site.

He’s referring to city officials who’ve said the Nadine Baum site is not financially feasible, considering the limited budget allowed by the bond vote. City Attorney Kit Williams has also said he doesn’t believe the city can legally use bond funds to help build public housing units as part of a liner building on the parking deck. WAC and UA officials have both said they’re not interested in moving the Nadine Baum site elsewhere to make room for a parking deck.

The amended resolution would still include language of intent to “seek opportunities to provide additional benefits including housing, arts production facilities, and other uses that further the city’s expressed priorities.”

» See Smith’s proposed change to his resolution

Williams said he still has concerns with the proposed resolution because it encourages the exploration of housing options when considering parking deck construction – something he doesn’t believe state law would allow.

“No matter how much the City Council may like and want to support public housing, the Arts Corridor Improvement Bonds may not be used for this purpose,” he wrote in a recent memo. “Please also remember that the Supreme Court has often held that a government may not do something indirectly which it cannot do directly. Therefore, the city should not try to finesse our lack of authority to use this bond revenue to support public housing.”

During public comment, some people said they still want the Nadine Baum site on the table for consideration. Others said they’d like it removed.

Smith’s amendment passed 7-0 (Gutierrez abstained, but did not say why), effectively removing the Nadine Baum site from the options for a parking deck but still encouraging the mayor to consider additional benefits other than just parking when building a deck.

Gutierrez later said she abstained because she’s torn. She said she wants both attainable housing and replacement parking. She said she didn’t want to vote for an amendment that removed the option for public housing, yet she knows it’s not an option in this case.

Petty said while the resolution is now mostly just symbolic, he said it’s still an important symbol. He said the city should consider the inclusion of housing when spending money on any major project.

Kinion said he’s always interested in projects that add attainable housing, but in this case he thought the idea might’ve been an example of political showboating since it’s not feasible in any way.

Decision:
During the final vote, the resolution passed 7-1. Turk voted against.

Background:
This item relates to the above mentioned potential locations for a new parking deck to replace the parking lot across from the Walton Arts Center.

Mayor Jordan is recommending a deck be built at the 2.4-acre Depot Lot, which is comprised of three parcels with 1.6 acres owned by Greg House’s Fayetteville Depot, LLC and 0.8 acres owned by the Bank of Fayetteville. Both entities have agreed to the sell portions of their property to the city for a combined $350,000 plus a land swap for approximately 0.2 acres on the north end of the planned civic plaza across West Avenue.

Staff said the deck would be built on a footprint that uses 60 existing parking spaces, which would require a 350-space deck to replace the total parking loss. All existing adjacent buildings would remain intact.

Staff said the biggest advantage of the Depot Lot is that it would have the highest redevelopment potential after a deck is built. Multi-story, mixed-use structures, staff said, could be built that could screen the parking deck from the street and provide commercial and residential density with a significant potential for property and sales tax revenue generation.

For more information, see our story from Dec. 16.

Location:

Dec. 17 Discussion:
City staff gave their pitch for choosing the Depot Lot.

Staff said without support from the UA, the Nadine Baum site isn’t possible. Staff said even with the university’s support, the Nadine Baum campus would have to be replaced before a deck could be built, which would push the total estimated cost to over $15 million and the bond issue only includes $10 million for the deck project.

Kinion said he feels ambushed by the addition of Jordan’s resolution, and that he’s heard a lot of information for the first time tonight. He said he wished the council could’ve had the discussion about the Nadine Baum site without having to hear a pitch from the city about why it’s off the table. Marsh agreed.

Jordan apologized and said the council can move forward in any manner they’d like. He said he knew people would want to voice their opinions about the Depot Lot tonight when also talking about the Nadine Baum site and figured it would be better if everything was discussed at once.

Scroggin said nothing new has been presented tonight. He said all of the information was presented at last week’s agenda-setting session which is protocol for these meetings. He said the notion that the council has been side-swiped with the administration’s recommendation just isn’t true.

Jordan apologized again, and said he had no intentions of ambushing anybody. He said from the beginning he’s tried to listen to everyone who had any concerns or ideas about this project. He said it was demanded that the deck be built in close proximity to the Walton Arts Center, so he drew a 1,000-foot-radius around the WAC and limited his options to that area. He said he liked the Nadine Baum site, but the university rejected the idea of a deck being built there. When considering the Depot Lot, he said he promised the Arsaga family early on that he would not support any plan that would remove their business. He said people demanded the Train Bank stay, so he included that to the list of requirements as well. He said with an offer on the table to develop the lot without taking any buildings, and with a bond issue passed that requires funding be spent within three years, he thought he had a solid plan that was in everyone’s best interest. He said that’s been his only goal throughout the entirety of this project.

He invited Melissa Terry to speak about the Fayetteville Housing Authority’s offer to partner with the city to develop the Nadine Baum site. He asked how the FHA could help overcome the estimated $8 million cost required to replace the Nadine Baum building if a deck were built there. Terry said sitting down with all interested parties would be the first step in coming up with a solution. That collaborative conversation, she said, has not happened.

The first person to speak said a parking deck in front of Arsaga’s would block its view from West Avenue and potentially damage the business, which is owned and operated by artists, and is exactly the type of establishment that should compliment the Cultural Arts Corridor. Another person said the Depot Lot plan seems to be manufacturing culture by sacrificing the city’s existing organic culture that emanates from Arsaga’s.

Cary Arsaga spoke and he questioned why the city would spend taxpayer money to purchase private land for a parking deck when there’s public land already available in one of the other options (the East Lot on School Avenue). He said he knows the administration’s answer is because the Depot Lot has the highest potential for redevelopment with additional buildings, but he believes that lot will eventually be developed no matter what. “Why subsidize a private developer?” he asked.

Five other people spoke in favor of exploring the Nadine Baum site, including several members of the Fayetteville Housing Authority Board of Commissioners.

Barbara Putman, executive director of the Community Creative Center at Nadine Baum Studios, said her organization would suffer if the Nadine Baum site was chosen. She said the arts center, which offers year-round art events, art camps, professional development and in-school residencies, is right in the heart of the Cultural Arts Corridor and implored the council not to consider a plan that would take their building in exchange for a parking deck.

The council voted 8-0 to table both resolutions until Jan. 7.

Jan. 7 Discussion:
Peter Nierengarten, the city’s director of sustainability, said he wanted to remind the council of the bond language requirements concerning a new parking deck. Those requirements state that:

• No more than 25 spaces from the West Avenue lot could be removed before replacement parking is online
• Replacement parking must fully replace the West Avenue lot plus any lost spaces on the deck site
• All new spaces must be within 1,000 feet of the Walton Arts Center’s west public entrance

Nierengarten said choosing a location quickly is important to ensure the city doesn’t incur added costs.

Sterling Hamilton with Sage Partners showed a conceptual plan for the Depot Lot, which shows a 400-space parking deck, a 9,600-square-foot liner building, and a 100-room hotel with a bank (see below).

Marsh said she has concerns with the process the city used to get to this point, but she likes the conceptual plan and the fact that it allocates space for a future transit hub. She said she hopes the council will table this issue tonight to allow more time to consider the proposal. Scroggin agreed.

Turk said she’d like a lot more details before making a decision. City staff said this resolution is just to express the council’s intent to move forward with the proposal, and that any actual development plans would be up for consideration later. Those plans would include all the specific details about the project.

Joe Fennel, who owns Bordinos, said he prefers the Depot Lot. He said he knows the proposal makes the Arsaga family uncomfortable, and as a fellow business owner, he understands those concerns. But, he said he trusts the mayor and Sterling Hamilton when they say their plan is to ensure the best possible outcome for Arsaga’s.

Several residents have spoken against the proposal. Some cited concerns about having a parking deck overshadowing Arsaga’s. Others said they’re uncomfortable with buying land using public money and then conveying some of that to a private developer.

Steve Clark, president of the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce, said he favors the Depot Lot because it presents more opportunity for economic development.

Cary Arsaga said he can’t possibly be objective about where a parking deck should be built because he doesn’t want it in front of his business and that’s a personal reason. However, he said the vision for his restaurant has always been to create a place that is truly Fayetteville – one that embodies the spirit of the city and that everyone would one day agree is a must-visit for anyone who spends time here. He said after only eight years, it’s too early to declare that a success, but the potential is there and he hopes the council takes that into consideration when thinking about the impact a parking deck would have on that vision.

Public comment ended at 12:23 a.m. Wednesday.

The council voted 8-0 to table the resolution for another two weeks. The discussion will continue Jan. 21.

Background:
Both city staff and the Planning Commission recommend approval of the requests with the following conditions of approval:

1. Any relocation of or damage to existing utilities or existing facilities shall be at the owner/developer’s expense.

Location: