BENTONVILLE -- Benton County is forming a board of appeals to hear cases where residents challenge decisions of the Planning Board.
The Committee of the Whole considered 10 proposals Tuesday naming people to the appeals board, sending all 10 to the Quorum Court's Sept. 22 meeting for approval.
Planning Appeal Board
Benton County is forming a planning appeals board to hear the cases of residents who disagree with decisions of the Planning Board. The Committee of the Whole on Tuesday endorsed the appointments of seven appeals board members — Williams L. Holley, Michael L. Hooper, Dietrich W. Bengs, Matthew Zachary, Mark Curtis, Nate Bachelor and Joel Jones — and three alternates — Brandon Pinkerton, Nick Jewett and Kim Wilkins.
Source: Staff report
Mark Curtis one of the 10 appointees, has just ended eight years of service in the Planning Board. Curtis said the appeals board was part of the new planning regulations adopted in 2014 but the positions were never filled.
"This is a part of the new planning guidelines that were adopted in 2014." Curtis said. "That appeals board was part of that process but it's taken a while to get this together. It's to take the onus off the JPs."
The county previously relied on special committees of justices of the peace, appointed by the county judge, to hear appeals of decisions from the Planning Board. If a resident remains dissatisfied after a county appeal, they can then appeal their case to circuit court.
John Sudduth, general services administrator said the appeals board will also consider appeals related to the building codes adopted by the state and the county. Curtis said in his eight years on the Planning Board there were five appeals made to the county. Sudduth said he expected with the oversight of the building codes added to their responsibilities the appeals board could meet monthly. Brenda Guenther, comptroller, said the appeals board members will be paid $100 per meeting.
Kurt Moore, justice of the peace for District 13 and chairman of the Committee of the Whole, has served on several appeals panels hearing cases brought from the Planning Board. Moore thanked the appointees for their willingness to serve the county.
"I've got to say this is quite a wealth of talent we have before us," Moore said. "I hope you don't have to work too much."
The justices of the peace also sent on to the Quorum Court a proposal approving another $127,964 for the work done on the Spanker Creek Bridge project, but asked for a detailed report on the reason for the added expense.
According to the proposal, the cost of the bridge project increased from $846,100 to $1,102,027 and the county's share increased to $551,014. Shirley Sandlin, justice of the peace for District 8, said she thought the extra money was needed because federal agencies involved in the project determined more work needed to reduce the risk of flooding at the bridge site.
The committee agreed to ask a representative of the county judge or the Road Department attend the Sept. 22 Quorum Court meeting and report on the project.
NW News on 09/14/2016