FAYETTEVILLE -- A plan to bring a guest ranch to a largely wooded area with few homes in the southwest part of town cleared the first hurdle but still has the specifics to go.
Elm Springs couple Jeremy and Andi Pratt first brought a set of permit requests for their proposed Piney Creek Ranch to the Planning Commission during the May 22 meeting. A number of residents spoke against the idea, describing the guest ranch as inappropriate for the Finger Road area because of potentially negative impact from traffic, animals, people and noise.
Next meeting
When: 5:30 p.m. June 26
Where: Room 219, City Hall
113 W. Mountain St.
The revised proposal commissioners reviewed Monday scaled back the plan, eliminating a proposed pavilion, amphitheater and two cabins. Music time was reduced to Friday and Saturday with a cutoff time at 10 p.m. Concerns from residents about the revised proposal largely echoed concerns stressed during the meeting in May.
About 20 residents spoke to the commission Monday. Some, such as Rick Bailey, deputy coroner for Washington County who lives on Finger Road, said the narrow stretch already has deterioration problems and can't handle the increase in activity the guest ranch would bring.
"One hundred more vehicles, even once or twice a week, is still a lot more vehicles that are going up and down that road," he said.
Terri Lane, executive director of the Northwest Arkansas Land Trust, wrote multiple letters to the city in opposition to the ranch and had a resident speak on her behalf Monday. The land, part of the city's Enduring Green Network, should remain an area of preservation and wildlife habitat protection, Lane argued. She expressed unease with turning the area into a for-profit venture.
"I think it is a fine idea, but the wrong location," Lane stated in a letter.
The permits will allow temporary agritourism events at the site, such as pumpkin patches, petting zoos and "cowboy cookouts." Also allowed will be barn dancing, nature summer camps and observation programs, weddings and some amplified music. The music will be housed in a lodge with the doors open on occasion, said Jonathan Curth, senior planner for the city.
Several Pratt family members spoke in support of the project. The portion of land owned by the Pratts accounts for just more than 7 acres, but combined with adjacent family member property and easements, the ranch would sit on about 17 acres, Andi Pratt said.
Commissioner Sloan Scroggin commended the plan, saying he always prefers seeing his kids "on horses and not on the Internet."
"If we're talking about what's actually hurting the environment, it's single family houses on large lots," he said.
Commissioner Alli Quinlan said the most contentious items about the proposal were removed in the revision. Other permitted uses under the zoning could result in a far more negative impact on the area, she said.
"This area could be cut for timber or have crops on it," Quinlan said.
The full development plan still has to go before the commission for approval. That discussion will entail specifics, such as drainage, parking limits and parameters for the structures.
Also scheduled Monday was a discussion on the development plan for the proposed expansion at Morgan Manor, operated under the Fayetteville Housing Authority. The expansion is meant to house more than 100 residents who live at Willow Heights.
Housing Authority officials have said extensive renovation is needed at Willow Heights to get the 1970s-era buildings in compliance with modern-day safety standards. That, combined with waning money from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, prompted the Housing Authority to move residents about a mile south to property it owns at Morgan Manor. A local electrician, Vlad Tatter, is under contract to buy the Willow Heights property, which he has said he hopes to use to build homes.
Plans call for two three-story buildings, one two-story building, one one-story building and a community center with a playground. The 58 additional units will bring a variety of one-, two- and three-bedroom units, ranging in size from about 800 square feet to 1,250 square feet.
Morgan Manor has 52 units right now on a lot with about 9 acres. The additional units would go on three unused acres within the lot. The Housing Authority complex under a form of Section 8 combining public and private equity to provide rental assistance to low-income residents.
Assistant City Attorney Blake Pennington advised the commission and public that discussion should center around the plans for the expansion and the city has specific guidelines on denying any development plan.
Several members of the public denounced the move and how it came to be. Martha Cardwell, a south Fayetteville resident, described moving the Willow Heights residents as "completely wrong." She expressed her disdain for the idea of making money off a piece of property that once housed low-income residents.
"This whole thing is just alarming," she said. "It's not fair. There's no choice."
NW News on 06/13/2017