A subdivision’s demise

Dear editor:

I am Gary Thompson and I own the property at 111 Marquette Place. My wife and I grew up here in Hot Springs and graduated from Lakeside High School. Even though we have lived around the world, we knew that Hot Springs would be our final domicile and we returned here over 25 years ago to live out our lives. We found our “forever” house here in the Broadmoor Subdivision and it was the perfect home location, close to everything but tucked away and surrounded by hundreds of feet of untouched timber and foliage on all four sides. But then, “progress” and “the city” intervened.

In the 1990s, the Cornerstone Mall was proposed and the city, to appease us property owners, promised a 50-foot natural buffer between the Broadmoor Subdivision and the mall keeping the large trees and vegetation intact. That “buffer” wound up being no buffer at all, just an ugly, unpainted 8-foot wooden fence (not maintained and now in disrepair)! My bedroom windows are but 20 feet from this fence. The noise from delivery trucks is constant, we endure obnoxious diesel smell from idling eighteen-wheelers, and trash is strewed all over my property from the noisy sanitation trucks making their rounds in the early morning hours to service the large commercial dumpsters. We have been forced to totally blacken our bedroom windows to block out the glaring Cornerstone alley night lights in order to sleep. All in the name of “progress.”

Now we are faced with the possibility of a massive water tower, 16 stories tall, built in the middle of our subdivision. This structure, at 170 feet, is so tall that engineering studies had to consider our local airport flight paths. Put in context, this tower is almost as tall as our landmark Hot Springs Tower and will dominate the landscape for miles around. The planning commission has stated that it is not uncommon to see such a water tower erected within family housing subdivisions. I have lived a long life, seen a lot of this country and I respectfully disagree. I will further bet that no planning commission member would even consider such a structure within his/her own subdivision; it simply would not be acceptable. The planning commission initiated many studies for this project but I doubt any study was directed toward the devastating loss of property values and quality of life for those of us having to live in the shadow of a massive eyesore water tower for which we had no vote.

It is incumbent upon our board of directors to support the citizens of our community and prevent the continuing degradation of our quality of life and property values. If this water tower construction is not stopped, I feel the only proper thing for the city to do is extend to each and every affected property owner a fair and reasonable buyout offer or appropriate compensation for our property value and quality of life losses. To do otherwise would be an unconscionable act and yet another slap in the face of law abiding and tax paying Hot Springs citizens. Thank you. Gary Thompson Garland County