Council To Consider Polo Field

BENTONVILLE — City property on Price Coffee Road could be the site of a future polo field if the City Council approves a lease to the Northwest Arkansas Polo Club.

The City Council meeting is set for 6 p.m. today at the Community Development Building, 305 S.W. A St.

The 27-acre field, just east of the intersection of Old Dump Road and Price Coffee Road along Little Sugar Creek, is not being used. The land was purchased by the city in 2004.

If approved, the three-year lease will be operated by Bob and Susan Koehler with the polo club. The club would make improvements to the grounds in lieu of lease payments. The initial lease term would run through September 2016 with the option of a year-to-year lease in the future. Additional activities for the leased site could include bike polo, ultimate disc golf, trails and U.S. Pony Club events, according to the agenda.

At A Glance

Bentonville City Council

The council also will consider the following items at tonight’s meeting:

• Revisions to the city’s landscaping ordinance

• Award a bid to T-N-T Inc. for $543,897 for runway safety improvements at the airport

• Award a bid to General Construction Solutions for sidewalk and draining improvements on Northwest Third Street, Southeast Second Street and Southeast A Street at a cost of $229,888

• Contract with CEI Engineering to develop a grading plan at the site of proposed Fire Station 6 on Southwest I Street

• Amend a contract with Morrison Shipley Engineers on the South Main Project for an amount not to exceed $18,130

• Contract with Traffic Engineering Consultants for an annual traffic signal timing study at 22 signalized intersections for an amount not to exceed $33,000

Source: Staff Report

Council members also will consider hiring a firm to develop an economic development strategic plan for the city. The plan will identify the city’s strengths and weaknesses, while looking at growth industries to diversify the local economy and strengthen current employment centers.

The final product will provide a guide with priorities and action items to improve the city’s economic development standing in the region, said Brian Bahr, city economic development manager.

Boyette Strategic Advisors of Little Rock was selected to create the plan. The company will conduct stakeholder interviews, public visioning sessions and surveys to help gauge perceptions and set priorities for development. The final product will include strategic recommendations, metrics to measure success and implementation checkpoints.

Mike Bender, city director of Public Works, will ask council members to accept a $551,698 grant from the Federal Aviation Administration to help with runway safety at the airport. The federal grant will cover 90 percent of the project cost. The city can pursue an additional 5 percent grant from the state once the federal grant is accepted.

The project will correct grading and obstruction problems within the runway safety area, a space that extends 75 feet on either side of the runway centerline and 300 feet beyond the ends of the runway. Improvements include relocating drainage around the runway, slope correction on the north end of the runway and correcting runway light elevations, Bender said.

The total project cost is estimated at $612,998, with the city shouldering $30,649 of the total.

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