Neighbors Withdraw Apartment Lawsuit

— An apartment complex off the north edge of the University of Arkansas campus will end up in university hands one way or another, principals involved said Wednesday.

Fadil Bayyari said he’ll sell the 2.7-acre, 60-apartment Sunshine Place complex to either Springdale-based Specialized Real Estate Group or to the university. Both have offered $2.25 million for the site.

The university is moving forward with legal and financial steps to secure the property and would simply file the eminent domain paperwork with new names if Bayyari sells to someone else, said Scott Varady, general counsel for the university.

“Everybody knows the University of Arkansas is going to exercise eminent domain on the site,” Varady said. “We’ll include any and all parties who might have an interest in the property in the paperwork.”

The deal between Bayyari and Specialized was sidelined by a lawsuit filed by nearby property owners Beverly and Archie Schaffer and Susan and Ken Garner, who claimed the city should not have approved Specialized’s plan for a 122-unit, six-story apartment complex. That lawsuit was dropped Wednesday.

The University Board of Trustees earlier this month authorized university officials to use eminent domain to condemn and purchase the land.

“Right now, I’ve got a contract with Specialized, and if they come to the closing table with money, I’ll sell it to them and let them fight with the university,” Bayyari said. “If not, it looks like I’ll be forced to sell to the university when they condemn the land. One way or another, I just want to complete a sale.”

The neighbors who filed the suit declined to comment beyond a written statement issued Wednesday, said Archie Schaffer III, one of the plaintiffs.

Seth Mims, leader of the Specialized team that proposed the Project Cleveland redevelopment on the site, did not return several calls to his cellphone or Specialized’s office on Wednesday.

At A Glance

Written Statement

Beverly and Archie Schaffer and Susan and Ken Garner issued the following statement after dropping their lawsuit Wednesday:

“Today, we have put an end to our appeal of the Fayetteville City Council’s decision to approve Project Cleveland.

“We filed our appeal of the city’s decision in and effort to protect the quality of life in our historic neighborhood. A private student dormitory and a six-story parking deck do not belong on a residential street next door to a landmark elementary school in an established neighborhood.

“While we were successful in winning a de novo, or brand new, review of this project by a jury of our peers, recent events render the continued pursuit of this appeal pointless. In the face of the announcement that the University of Arkansas intends to acquire a large part of the property that would have comprised Project Cleveland, proceeding with our efforts would amount to a fool’s errand. We don’t wish to burden the parties further with either the expense of an appeal to the Arkansas Supreme Court or a jury trial.

“Attached is a copy of the Order of Dismissal Without Prejudice. We are grateful for the hard work and encouragement of our attorneys and to the circuit court judge for the prompt and thoughtful attention given to the complex issues presented in this appeal.”

Source: Staff Report

Upcoming Events