Bentonville City Council couldn't muster motion on rezoning

No rezoning
No rezoning

BENTONVILLE -- The City Council, in a rare move, couldn't muster a motion on a hotly contested rezoning.

Muni Jampana of Bentonville wanted to rezone the 0.21-acre property at 3406 S.E. K St. from single family residential to duplex and patio home residential.

About the property

The land sits between by Southeast 34th Street to the north and Southeast 35th Street to the south. Adjacent land uses include single family homes in the immediate area, general commercial farther south and to the west. High density residential is to the northwest with agricultural to the north and east. Major roads nearby are Southeast Walton Boulevard to the south and Southeast J Street to the west.

Source: Bentonville Planning Department

Councilman Chris Sooter, in his 18th year on the council, couldn't remember the last time the council didn't make a motion on a item, especially a rezoning.

"There have been times we have sent an item back to planning and said, "Try again," he said Wednesday.

The council had four options -- to adopt the ordinance, to vote the ordinance down after a motion and a second, to send the matter back to the Planning Commission for further consideration or to do what they did -- City Attorney George Spence said.

The move was unique, Spence said.

"I do not recall us having an occasion before where something failed to receive a motion, second and vote," Spence said. "We've had rezonings voted down, and I think we've had at least one occasion where a proposed rezoning was sent back to the Planning Commission."

Spence said it was his opinion what happened Tuesday night was the equivalent of the matter being voted down. Mayor Stephanie Orman told the audience at the Tuesday night meeting the item might come back before the council.

Jampana originally went before the Planning Commission on Feb. 4 where he sought a rezone from single family residential to high density residential. After some discussion, he said he would take the lesser rezoning of duplex and patio home residential.

The Planning Commission voted 5-1 for the rezoning and passed it to the City Council.

Residents who live in the area opposed the project.

City planning staff received several comments against the rezoning request. One person wrote, "We do not want apartments in the neighborhood." Another said the project wasn't compatible with the neighborhood. Another resident said Jampana failed to provide a statement or diagram explaining why the proposed zoning change wouldn't conflict with current land uses. Residents also spoke out against the rezoning request at public hearings before the Planning Commission and City Council.

Sooter said he was glad residents took part in the public hearings.

"The process worked," he said. "You want to have those voices on the front end. There isn't anything we can do after the fact. We have to have engagement from the residents."

Jampana said the project would be two stories with single-car garages. "My plan is to build a very good duplex," he wrote in his narrative about the project to the Planning Commission.

Jampana didn't attend the City Council meeting because he was sick, he said. He said Wednesday he had no plans to build a single-family home around a bunch of older homes.

The city's future land use map depicts the area as high density residential. Those areas include apartments, condominium buildings, senior housing and other special types of group living, according to planning documents.

The planning staff report said the area was in transition and suggested planning commissioners consider a less intensive zoning district as a transition measure. The report said Jampana's original zoning request was compatible with the land-use map, but it didn't align with the zoning of surrounding properties and development trends in the area.

Jampana's narrative mentioned the city's "future master plan" and the area to be high density residential.

"Sometimes the future doesn't have to happen today," Councilman Chad Goss said.

Goss said he didn't think the council's move not to take up the rezoning will set a precedent.

"Bentonville is open for business," he said. "We want to grow and thrive and do the right thing along the way."

NW News on 02/17/2020

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