Council amends sewer ordinance, approves seven more POA rezones
An ordinance amending a section of the city’s Code of Ordinances regarding sewer connections picked up an amendment while clearing a second reading Monday night and seven new parcels owned by the Bella Vista Property Owners Association were given the green light for rezoning by the Bella Vista City Council during its regular session held at the District Court.
Councilman Jim Wozniak was the only member of the Council not in attendance.
The sewer ordinance, which was the only item of old business, will require a sanitary sewer connection when service becomes available on the street in front of the house, within 100 feet of a house lot or adjoining lot if passed by the Council after a third reading.
The amendment to the ordinance, presented by Councilman Doug Fowler, strikes the words “on the street” and adds “or on the side or rear of the house” after the words “in front of the house.”
The Council voted 5-0 to add the amendment. The third reading of the ordinance will take place Monday, June 26.
Each of the POA rezone requests were approved by the Council, with all but one being passed unanimously. The Council also voted to suspended the rules and advance each to a third and final reading at the request of the city’s planning staff. In each case, the vote to go to a third and final reading was unanimous.
The only ordinance not to be passed unanimously was the first one regarding property situated in southern Bella Vista and northeast of the intersection of Mercy Way and Dartmoor Road, accessed by Blowing Springs Road, which is a local dead end street.
The vote stood at 3-2, with Council members Wendy Hughes and Jerry Snow casting the two “no” votes, when City Attorney Jason Kelley instructed Mayor John D. Flynn he could vote in favor if he so desired, and Flynn
responded by voting “yes.”
The parcel will be rezoned from P-1, Conservation District to C-1, Neighborhood Commercial District.
The other ordinances included:
• Property known as the Lake Ecology Lab at 410 E. Lancashire Blvd. to be rezoned from P-1, Conservation District to C-1, Neighborhood Commercial District.
• Property which supports the POA Water Department utility use near 51 Huntley Drive to be rezoned from R-1, Residential Single Family District to C-1, Neighborhood Commercial District.
• Property situated in western Bella Vista, northeast of the intersection of Highlands Boulevard and Glasgow Road, to be rezoned from P-1, Conservation District to C-1, Neighborhood Commercial District.
• Property known as Highlands Golf Club situated in western Bella Vista, west of the intersection of Pamona Drive and Glasgow Road, to be rezoned from P-1, Conservation District to C-1, Neighborhood Commercial District.
• Property known as Scotsdale Maintenance, which is situated in northwest Bella Vista south of the intersection of Scotsdale Drive and Scotsdale Lane, to be rezoned from P-1, Conservation District to C-1, Neighborhood Commercial District.
• Property situated in eastern Bella Vista east of the intersection of Commonwealth Road and Euston Road, to be rezoned from P-1, Conservation District to R-O, Residential Office District.
The last ordinance on the Council’s agenda was one amending various sections of the Code of Ordinances of the city of Bella Vista to effectuate departmental restructuring of planning, building inspection and code enforcement functions.
The ordinance, which passed by a 5-0 vote, carried with it an emergency declaration, which also passed, 5-0.
Usually when an emergency is declared in conjunction with an ordinance it means the ordinance takes effect immediately.
This time, however, it was written to begin on June 26.
The Council also passed four resolutions. They were:
• A resolution expressing the willingness of the city of Bella Vista to utilize Federal Aid Surface Transportation Block Grant Program — Attributable, Transportation Alternatives Program, and/or Carbon Reduction Program funds — to assist with the construction of the Mercy Way corridor improvements.
• A resolution amending the 2023 budget to facilitate repayments of short-term financing indebtedness related to the purchase of a new fire truck.
• A resolution amending the 2023 budget in the amount of $41,000 to authorize one additional part-time engineer position in community development services and to fund the position.
• A resolution amending the 2023 budget to facilitate transfer of employees and funding between departments to implement departmental restructuring of code enforcement and building inspection duties.
All of the votes on the resolutions were unanimous except for the resolution authorizing $41,000 for an additional part-time engineer to be added to the Community Development Services staff. That resolution passed by a 4-1 margin with Snow casting the lone “no” vote.