Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Prairie Grove considers buying downtown parking lot
PRAIRIE GROVE — The City Council discussed but didn’t vote at its Feb. 26 meeting on whether to buy about half of a parking lot behind some downtown businesses.
Larry Nelson with Southern Mercantile wants to sell the parking lot he owns, about one-half acre with 50 parking spaces along with a small concrete building.
He gave the city the first option on purchasing the land.
Nelson said the parking area appraised at $88,000, but he is asking for $72,000, enough to pay for a new roof on his building and to pay off the building, according to an email from Administrative Assistant Larry Oelrich to the mayor and City Council.
If the city does not buy it, Oelrich said it’s possible Nelson could sell it to a buyer who might put in a new building there along Mock Street, which means the city would lose parking spaces downtown.
The city owns the rest of the parking lot, except for about eight parking spaces that belong to Daisies and Olives, an antique shop.
Alderman Rick Ault, who is also director of Main Street Prairie Grove, said the loss of that land for parking would cause a disruption for downtown businesses if someone came in and built on that tract.
“For the stability of Main Street, it’s an expensive but good investment,” Ault told council members.
Alderwoman Brea Gragg disagreed, saying she thought it was “a whole lot of money and not a lot of gain.”
Mayor David Faulk wondered if there was a price that would make it worth the gain.
After more discussion, the council voted to authorize Faulk and Oelrich to negotiate a price with Nelson, with a starting offer of $50,000. If an agreement is reached, it would have to come back to the council for approval.
Gragg was quick to say she would not vote for it at $50,000. She said the price was not the issue to her, but rather that she didn’t see it as a priority.
If the council approves buying the land at some point, the money would have to come out of reserves, Oelrich said. The money budgeted for reserves in 2024 would be enough to pay for the land, he said.
Ault asked the city to evaluate the use of the small building on the tract, noting the city could use it for storage or some other purpose.
The council also discussed the possibility of adding more days for fireworks over the July Fourth holiday, but members were divided on the issue and decided to continue to discuss.
The question came up at the request of a citizen, according to the mayor.
Both Police Chief Chris Workman and Fire Chief J.C. Dobbs said they oppose allowing another day for fireworks.
Presently, city ordinance allows fireworks only on July 4.