Panel delays Bethel Heights wastewater vote

The Arkansas Natural Resources Commission on Wednesday delayed again a decision on a proposed $11.6 million construction project to address the troubled wastewater system in Bethel Heights until residents there vote next month on whether to merge with the neighboring Springdale.

At the moment, a vote on whether Springdale should annex Bethel Heights is scheduled for Aug. 11.

During the Wednesday meeting held via teleconference, commissioners voted unanimously to table the proposal until their next scheduled meeting on Sept. 16, at which time residents in both cities will presumably have voted.

The commission previously voted to table a decision on the project during a May 20 meeting, referencing the ongoing discussions about merging the two cities.

The $11.6 million proposed loan to Bethel Heights would fund the construction of a pump station and pipeline to take wastewater from the city to a treatment plant run by the Northwest Arkansas Conservation Authority. For the time being, Bethel Heights has been hauling wastewater to the Conservation Authority plant by truck, at great cost to the city.

A description of the loan from the Natural Resources Commission’s July meeting packet says Bethel Heights would have to raise its monthly water rates from an average of $58.64 based on 4,000 gallons of usage to $97.34 “as soon as possible” with the

possibility of additional rate increases down the road.

During the May commission meeting, Vice Chairman Bruce Leggitt noted that burden on residents when arguing for delaying approval of the project.

“I just feel like we need to give the residents up there a chance to make up their mind whether or not they want this loan and pay these hundred-dollar water bills, sewer bills, or if they want to go the consolidation route,” Leggitt said at the time.

The Bethel Heights wastewater system has been the subject of complaints from nearby residents Lawrence and Joetta Bowen, who say untreated wastewater from the city’s Lincoln Drive plant has been allowed to pool on the ground, flooding their yard.

The Arkansas Division of Environmental Quality fined the city $101,000 last summer for operating out of compliance. The division later suspended $80,000 of the imposed fines.

In May, Benton County sheriff’s office investigators executed a search warrant at a Bethel Heights waste facility after residents complained that the city had been illegally dumping wastewater.

And last week, in a ruling related to Division of Environmental Quality’s lawsuit against the city, a Benton County Circuit judge ordered Bethel Heights to take all necessary measures to fix the problems, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported.

A majority of voters in both Bethel Heights and Springdale must choose to merge in order for the consolidation effort to succeed.

Bethel Heights has approximately 2,500 residents; Springdale has 81,000.

At the Natural Resources Commission’s May meeting, Ryan Benefield, deputy director of the Natural Resources Division, acknowledged that the cheapest option would be to connect Bethel Heights’ wastewater system to Springdale’s system.

Springdale, however, has said it will not allow connections from outside cities to its system.