WARD 2, POSITION 1

outdoor learning areas and got volunteers together.

“I think my role as city councilor is going to be similar to that,” he said: “Finding out what people want to do and how to best make it happen.”

He also joined a joint advisory commission in 2009 and sought permission to build trails on the land behind Cooper Elementary School, he said, and this required that he work with the POA, the city, the school and local trail enthusiasts, and ultimately resulted in students having access to trails in Blowing Springs.

“That was kind of a neat journey,” he said. “It was a neat little juggling act getting all these authorities to agree on a single vision.”

He also contributed more recently to Bella Vista’s Master Trail Plan.

Stinespring said he’s been in real estate since 2008, and he’s primarily handled residential properties. He works with people regularly, he said, who are concerned about their property values.

Moreover, as a Realtor, he said, he’s got a good feel for why people are coming to Bella Vista and why they’re moving from the city.

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As people express their desire to have more economic development,” he said, “where and what?”

It’s difficult to guide development in the city, he said, because space is limited.

“I don’t want us to be too careless about what sort of development we want to pursue,” he said. “Let’s find a way to provide what people want.”

In the case of dining and shopping, he said, it would pay to provide more unique experiences.

“Simply having Bella Vista be more desirable to those who visit and live here is beneficial for our community,” he said.

Another issue, he said, is clarity of vision. Without getting people to work together, with a clear idea of what they want to do, he said, it can be difficult to get anything meaningful accomplished.

“I think that’s where it’s important to not just use a few words to describe what we want to do with Bella Vista,” he said. • “Bella Vista’s a very unique area to live in,” he said, “and it’s not very easy to expect every backyard to look the same. It can’t be too restrictive. I think that would impede on people being able to build on their properties in ways that would increase their property values and their neighbors’.”