City Ponders Park Plan

Key Question is How To Pay For $27.7 Million Project

A sign marks the entrance to a planned regional park in south Fayetteville.
SIGN OF THINGS TO COME
A sign marks the entrance to a planned regional park in south Fayetteville. SIGN OF THINGS TO COME

— In the 2 1/2 years since a massive, mixed-use development called SouthPass went belly up, city officials have been wondering how to build a 200-acre regional park that was supposed to go hand-in-hand with the private project.

At A Glance

What Is SouthPass?

The SouthPass project was part of a public-private partnership brokered by former Mayor Dan Coody in 2004.

SouthPass developers John Nock, Richard Alexander, Hank Broyles and Steve Aust agreed to donate 200 acres for the regional park and give the city $1 million in exchange for the city annexing the property, resolving environmental issues and sharing the cost of extending utilities to the development.

City Council members approved zoning and development plans for 750 houses, 2,900 apartments, 630 condominiums and 360,000-square-feet of commercial space in 2008.

Development never occurred, and Danville-based Chambers Bank, the lender for the SouthPass project, acquired the property in lieu of foreclosure in 2010. Chambers deeded the 200 acres for the regional park to the city later that year. The bank agreed to make good on the $1 million commitment as development occurs.

J.R. Meeks, vice president for the bank, said Thursday, “Chambers believes (the regional park) will be a good project for the region, for the city and for all of Northwest Arkansas.”

Meeks said the bank is marketing roughly 660 acres of the former SouthPass site. The SouthPass project, including parkland, was 872 acres.

“We’re still working with a few different groups,” he said. “We feel that banks aren’t in the business to own real estate. We are still optimistic that we will be selling the property.”

Source: Staff Report

Parks and Recreation staff members want the public land west of Cato Springs Road to have all the bells and whistles other Northwest Arkansas residents enjoy.

The city has almost enough money to get started, but no firm idea how to finish the park as planned.

“If we’re going to have a regional park out there, we’re going to have to find a different funding source than what we have,” Mayor Lioneld Jordan said recently.

Figuring Finances

Since 2002, the city has stockpiled $4.5 million in hotel, motel and restaurant taxes to pay for the regional park, according to Paul Becker, city finance director. Officials estimate they’ll need $6 million to complete the first phase. The total cost is estimated at $27.7 million.

City officials could continue to save tax money to pay for the park. The city’s half of the 2 percent tax on hotel stays and restaurant purchases is expected to generate $2.5 million this year for parks operations, maintenance and capital needs. Of that, $563,000 is budgeted for the regional park.

Connie Edmonston, Parks and Recreation director, has mentioned selling naming rights for the park or seeking private donations.

The City Council could decide to dip into more than $12 million in reserve. Money also could come from parkland dedication fees. City code requires residential developers to donate land for parks or pay money in lieu of a land donation.

Extending bonds used to build the Fayetteville Town Center to help pay for the park has also been discussed, but Jordan and city staff said they don’t have a concrete plan for using that money or other options at their disposal.

The only formal proposal for extending Town Center bonds, which are being repaid using the Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission’s half of the hotel, motel and restaurant tax, is an $8.5 million request from the Walton Arts Center to help renovate its Dickson Street campus.

Fayetteville voters received an automated telephone survey last week asking if they would support extending Town Center bonds to pay for the arts center renovation versus a regional park. It’s unclear who commissioned the survey. Jordan, the Advertising and Promotion Commission’s executive director and a spokeswoman for the Walton Arts Center all denied involvement with the poll.

Jordan said he doesn’t intend to present a bond proposal to commissioners.

“If the A&P Commission asks for it, we’ll present what we have,” the mayor added. “But right now, nobody’s asked me to prepare anything.”

Park Plans

The park will be built in several phases, Edmonston said.

Phase one calls for eight soccer fields, concessions, restrooms and infrastructure, which includes streets, water and sewer lines, parking, drainage improvement, sidewalks and utilities.

Edmonston said the Parks Department’s greatest immediate need is soccer fields. A lease with the University of Arkansas for fields at the Lewis Soccer Complex near Asbell Elementary School ends in 2018. Edmonston said university officials don’t intend to renew the lease.

Jordan said he wants to have new soccer fields built in 2014, but neither he nor Edmonston would provide a timeline for regional park construction.

The park’s second phase includes eight youth baseball fields, trails, a large pavilion and playground.

Eight tennis courts, six softball fields, four basketball hoops, four sand volleyball courts, a kids-size splash pad and a small amphitheater could follow.

Edmonston envisioned the amphitheater as a larger version of the fixed stage at Gulley Park with seating in a grassy area.

“If someone wants to come in and do the amphitheater and make it bigger ... we’ll work with them anyway we can,” she said.

Administrators at the Walton Arts Center, which owns the Arkansas Music Pavilion, Northwest Arkansas’ main outdoor concert venue, have said they’re looking for a permanent home. Beth Bobbitt, arts center public relations manager, said Wednesday they intend to keep the AMP at the Washington County Fairgrounds for the 2013 concert season. Beyond that, it’s anyone’s guess.

Bobbitt said arts center officials want to put the AMP somewhere near Interstate 540 on a site that has streets and utilities in place. She said the cost of infrastructure alone at the regional park site makes it unattractive.

“We’ve never considered that piece of land a viable option for the AMP,” Bobbitt said.

She added it’s too early to speculate on how arts center officials’ viewpoints could change if infrastructure were in place. The search for a new location for the pavilion is on hold while the center focuses on its renovation, Bobbitt said.

Meeting A Need

Advocates for the regional park said it’s needed to provide more recreational opportunities for Fayetteville’s growing population, to keep up with amenities other Northwest Arkansas cities offer and to promote economic development.

“It would allow more children and students to participate in an organized sport and learn leadership skills,” said Phillip McKnight, one of nine volunteers on the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board.

Eight aging ballfields at Walker Park aren’t meeting the need of the more than 900 young sluggers who participate in leagues each year, according to Blake Ketchum, board president for Fayetteville Youth Baseball. The regional park would free Walker Park fields for practices and would increase the city’s ability to host regional, state and national tournaments, Ketchum said.

John Paul, another parks board member, said a regional park would relieve the burden on parents who have trouble shuttling their kids to practices and games at facilities scattered throughout town. Those facilities include the Gary Hampton Softball Complex on North Salem Road; the White River Baseball Complex on South Armstrong Road; and the Lewis Soccer Complex on North Lewis Avenue.

Paul said amenities, such as tennis courts, will also appeal to residents with or without children.

The city’s eight public tennis courts are well short of the 40 courts recommended more than 10 years ago using National Recreation and Park Association standards.

Parks staff predicted the park, when complete, could draw six new sports tournaments and 160 out-of-town teams each year. They estimated the annual economic impact of people buying gasoline, dining out and staying in hotels at more than $1.5 million.

City officials said the regional park would draw more housing and businesses to south Fayetteville.

George Faucette, an owner of a local Coldwell Banker real estate franchise, said the park would increase the number of people looking to buy a home in Fayetteville.

“One of the factors that’s included in the matrix of how people rate cities is always parks,” Faucette said.

Fayetteville has 35 parks on 2,730 acres. Lakes Fayetteville, Wilson and Sequoyah, with their adjoining land, account for three-fourths of the acreage.

Faucette said it’s difficult to predict the immediate impact of a regional park on the SouthPass development site.

“We still have in the area ... a number of subdivisions that were built out and no homes ever went in,” Faucette said.

Keeping Up

Voters in other Northwest Arkansas cities have approved sales tax-backed bonds to pay for new parks within the past six years.

Rogers opened its Regional Sports Park last month. The park’s six ballfields hosted the annual Snowball Classic the following weekend. A $135.4 million bond issue approved in 2011 provided $26.8 million for the park and other parks projects.

Springdale plans to add up to 195 acres to its 225 acres of parkland using a $67.4 million bond issue voters approved last year. The bonds generated $16.1 million for parks. Rick McWhorter, Parks and Recreation director, said Springdale is designing two parks in the southeast and northwest corners of town to include baseball, softball and soccer fields.

At A Glance

Former Landfill

The former C&L Landfill occupied 33 acres of the planned park from 1972 to 1976, according to Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality records. Katherine Benenati, spokeswoman for the department, said $3.8 million from the Post Closure Trust Fund will be used to repair an earthern cap on the landfill. A portion of fees that landfills charge goes into the fund.

Benenati couldn’t provide a timeline for the repair. Connie Edmonston, Fayetteville Parks and Recreation director, said the work wouldn’t prevent regional park construction.

The former landfill will become an open, multiuse area, according to preliminary park designs.

Source: Arkansas Department Of Environmental Quality, Fayetteville Parks and Recreation Department

Bentonville’s Memorial Park last year hosted the Cal Ripken World Series, Pitch for the Cure and state USSSA tournaments. Memorial Park features nine softball diamonds, 11 soccer fields, 12 tennis courts and a number of other amenities, according to the city’s website. It was renovated in 2009 as part of a $110 million bond package approved in 2007. Bond money also has been used to improve streets, develop other parks and provide money for the Bentonville police and fire departments.

Decision Time

Justin Tennant, a Ward 3 representative on the City Council and a member of the Advertising and Promotion Commission, said the regional park and Walton Arts Center renovation are both worthwhile projects.

“In a perfect world, I would love for everything to be built,” Tennant said. “But the reality right now is the only decision to be made is the Walton Arts Center proposal.”

Marilyn Heifner, commission executive director, said last week she was working with Stephens Inc. representatives to determine how much money could be generated by extending Town Center bonds.

Fayetteville voters approved a nearly $7 million bond issue in 1997 to pay for the convention center on the south side of the downtown square. The commission’s share of hotel, motel and restaurant tax proceeds is paying off the debt. Heifner said $1.9 million remained as of Feb. 1. She expected the balance to be paid by October 2015.

Heifner said preliminary figures show a bond extension could generate about $11 million. If bonds are issued before all Town Center debt is retired, a portion of the money would go toward paying off remaining debt. The Walton Arts Center asked for $6.5 million through a bond extension and $2 million from commission reserve.

Heifner said if the arts center’s request is fulfilled, roughly $3 million could be available for other projects, including the regional park or a permanent venue for the music pavilion.

City Council members would have to approve any recommendation from the commission. Ultimately, voters would decide whether to extend the bonds.

It's unclear what, if any, action commissioners will take. Matthew Petty, Ward 2

alderman, got the backing of the City Council to do a public survey asking residents

how they would want bond money to be spent. Petty, who also sits on the Advertising

and Promotion Commission, said Thursday the survey he proposed is awaiting a decision from fellow commissioners.

Parks board members said a steering committee is needed to further refine plans for the regional park and to figure out how to pay for it.

“We are very anxious to give the city the regional park, and we’re exploring the best ways to do that financially,” Paul said. “We hope that the City Council and mayor will make the regional park a higher priority this year and going forward.”

Edmonston said there’s no doubt in her mind the park will be built.

“It’s going to happen,” she said.

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