Prairie Grove council considers new subdivision

PRAIRIE GROVE — Another single-family residential development is in the works for the city on 80 acres along Bush Street and Ditmars Road.

The City Council on Monday placed a preliminary plat for Hudson Heights, a subdivision that will have 99 lots and two detention ponds, on first reading. Plans show the subdivision will have three access points, two from Bush Street and one off Ditmars Road.

The Planning Commission approved the Hudson Heights preliminary plat at its March 11 meeting with the condition the developer widen Ditmars Street along the subdivision side of the road to meet city standards.

Blake Murray with Engineering Services of Springdale agreed to widen Ditmars Road at the Planning Commission meeting.

Drainage plans and a plan to move a sewer line had not been turned into yet for the commission meeting, but Larry Oelrich, the city’s former director of administrative services and public works, said all would be reviewed and approved before construction begins.

The preliminary plat was on the council’s agenda for final approval but questions came up because of the drainage plans and utility moving.

City attorney Steven Parker told council members that approval of the preliminary plat gives the developer permission to start construction.

Chuck Wiley, public works manager, responded that he hadn’t seen the construction plans yet.

Mayor Sonny Hudson suggested the council leave it on first reading because several items still needed to be worked out.

“I wasn’t comfortable with it,” Hudson said, adding it seemed council members appeared to agree with him.

Hudson then turned to Brandon Rush, who attended the meeting for Engineering Services, and told him he knew what needed to be done to get the plat approved at the next council meeting.

The Hudson Heights property has been discussed at several commission and council meetings for the past several months.

The Planning Commission on Nov. 12 voted against a rezoning request from the owner of the property at the time, Dwight Bartholomew, to rezone the land from agriculture to an R-1.5 zone. Planners said they preferred the land be rezoned R-1 to fit in with other R-1 subdivisions in the area.

Bartholomew appealed the denial to the City Council in December. The council agreed with the Planning Commission but, instead of turning down the appeal, it voted to pass an ordinance to go ahead and rezone the land to R-1.

Hudson explained at the time the developer was proposing more narrow lots than allowed in an R-1 zone but longer lots to provide larger backyards.

The Planning Commission in January approved the concept plat for the development and approved variances for the lots for a R-1 zone. Lots could not be less an 9,000 square feet in size (instead of 10,000 square feet), with a lot width of not less than 80 feet (instead of 100 feet). The commission allowed an 8-foot side setback (instead of 10-foot side setback).

Murray told the Planning Commission last week that lots would be about 10,000 square feet. He said he could not say “for sure” the size of the houses but thought they would be between 1,800 and 2,200 square feet. Lot sizes will be similar to those in Prairie Oaks subdivision, according to Oelrich.

In other business, the council approved a minor subdivision for Keith Marrs with KSDA, Inc., on South Mock Street for a third lot split on property that was rezoned to R-1 in February. Marrs told the Planning Commission he will use the land for single-family houses that will be all brick and about 1,500 square feet in size.

The council also agreed to replat Lots 148 and 149 in Prairie Meadows, Phase 3, at the request of Eric Heller with Highview Rentals LLC. This property is next to Prairie Grove Public Library and located along Buchanan Street. The property will be replatted into lots for duplexes. Duplexes already are located to the south of this property.

Heller told the council he wanted to donate one area, about 1.5 acres, to the city that is in a floodplain. The council then agreed it was willing to accept the land.

In other news, the council approved three rezoning requests that also were recommended by the planning commission:

• A request from Memphis Snyder to rezone 40 acres, located south of the third phase of Prairie Meadows subdivision, from A-1, agriculture, to R-1.75, single-family residential.

• A rezoning request from Martin Levine to rezone property along Heritage Parkway near Country Pride Auto from A-1 to commercial, B-1.

• A rezoning request from Justin Teague to rezone 10890 Danny Bryan Road from A-1 to R-2, which allows duplexes. This lot already has one duplex on it and would have space available for another duplex if Teague decided to build one in the future. Teague said he was rezoning it to align with what is already on the property.