NLR opts not to accept streets

Subdivision responsible for its own upkeep, council votes

Private streets in disrepair within an annexed subdivision of North Little Rock won't become the city's responsibility to fix, the North Little Rock City Council said Monday night.

Homeowners in the Ranchettes at Deer Meadows, a subdivision annexed in 2007 by North Little Rock, requested the city to accept dedication of streets and drainage infrastructure in their neighborhood, complaining that the city isn't providing equal service to their area.

Council members defeated an ordinance to accept the streets by Ward 2 Aldermen Maurice Taylor and Linda Robinson, who represent the area, with only three votes being in favor. Taylor, Robinson and Alderman Bruce Foutch voted for the legislation. Aldermen Debi Ross, Beth White, Steve Baxter and Charlie Hight voted no. Alderman Murry Witcher was absent.

"There is some work we can do on these roads, but we can't because the streets are private," Taylor said. "It's our responsibility to take care of our taxpayers."

Other aldermen said that there wasn't any precedent for the city taking over the responsibility for private streets in order to use city funds to repair them. The streets requested for acceptance were Louisiana Downs Cove, Pimlico Cove and Preakness Cove.

"I don't remember us doing something like this in the past 14 years," Hight said, referring to his time as an alderman.

Robert Voyles, the city's community planning director, said the developer requested annexation to "help sell the lots," all 5-6 acres in size. The subdivision's streets were "built as private streets" under rural standards while it was in an unincorporated part of Pulaski County.

Chief City Engineer Mike Smith told aldermen that he didn't have an estimate on the repair costs if the streets were accepted, but added: "You could spend a good amount of money."

Taylor said that when the neighborhood was annexed, it was within North Little Rock's extra-territorial planning jurisdiction, so the city should have enforced city standards.

"When those roads were built, we could have told them then how to build them," Taylor said. "We clearly dropped the ball there. Now it's annexed into the city, and we can't fill a pothole there."

Dwight Lambert, a Deer Meadows resident, told the council that the only city service provided to the subdivision is trash pick-up. Lambert also helped to lead an attempt in 2010 by Deer Meadows homeowners to de-annex from the city.

"If I adopted a kid, I get the whole kid; I don't just get an arm," Lambert said. "We pay too much money out there [in property taxes]. We want you to provide things to us that you provide to the Park Hill and Argenta areas. When Argenta is on the agenda or Park Hill is on the agenda, you don't argue about it. We deserve everything the rest of North Little Rock does."

Metro on 05/13/2014

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