Springdale Council Moves Toward Closing Mill Avenue

Park Area For Greenway To Be Created

SPRINGDALE -- Mill Street between Emma and Johnson avenues could be closed after the next City Council meeting.

The Council Street and Capital Improvement Program Committee voted Monday to send a resolution to close Mill to the full council with a recommendation for approval. The closing of the block of Mill Street would allow the Razorback Greenway to be built through that area, said Mayor Doug Sprouse.

At A Glance

Council Committee Action

Springdale’s City Council Committee met Monday and approved:

• Offering a settlement on a condemnation lawsuit with Victory Church for $3.07 million

• Recommending approval of an agreement between Springdale and Johnson for a federal grant of $400,000 for preliminary work on extending 56th Street south to Johnson Mill Road

• Dropping a proposal to allow an extra sign on corner lots of major roads

Source: Staff Report

The two buildings on the east side of that block of Mill also will be demolished to allow the development of a park-like setting for the greenway, Sprouse said.

"This is also the first phase of the Downtown Revitalization Program," Sprouse said. "The Downtown Alliance has also been working very hard on this."

The greenway is a 36-mile trail that will run from Fayetteville to Lake Bella Vista. The area received a $15 million federal Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant for the project. A required match of $3.75 million will come from $15 million the Walton Family Foundation has pledged for area trails.

The next council meeting is scheduled for May 13. Alderman Jeff Watson questioned if the vote should be delayed until the second meeting of May.

"I'd like to get some feedback what people think about this," Watson said.

The plans to close Mill have been known for months, said Jim Reed, alderman. When the Downtown Revitalization plan was formed, public hearings were held and the majority of people voted for the plan that included closing Mill, Sprouse said.

"I think there is a lot of support out there for this project," Sprouse said.

The city purchased the two buildings that will be demolished, Sprouse said. The building at 125 Mill St. was purchased for $115,000, its appraised value, in November 2013. It is also known as the Barrack building or the orange building because of its color.

The Wilson building, 100 E. Emma Ave., was purchased in August by the city for $195,000. It is located at the corner of Mill and Emma.

Two other small parcels will have to be condemned for the trail to be constructed, said Ernest Cate, city attorney. The small parcels were alleys that were purchased for back taxes, he said. The owner is listed as Yen Phung with an address of Plainville, Conn., according to Washington County real estate records.

"We have offered to repay them what they gave for it, plus the taxes they have paid since then," Cate said. "We haven't heard back from them."

All sections of the trail are now under contract, Sprouse said, with hopes that construction will be completed by the fall.

"We need to move forward on this," said Brad Bruns, alderman. "We've had enough delays."

The next downtown project, Sprouse said, would be uncovering Spring Creek, which runs through concrete culverts from Meadow Avenue to Johnson. The creek will be a water feature for the park setting.

The Police and Fire Committee voted to table a mutual aid agreement for fire service with Tontitown.

"The contract is not specific enough," said Eric Ford, alderman. "There are some ambiguities that need to be cleared up."

The contract mentions a Tontitown Fire Department, said Reed, and Tontitown has a Public Safety Department that includes police officers.

"We need to make sure this is for the fire and doesn't overlap for the police," Reed said.

NW News on 05/06/2014

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