Bentonville planners get look at Walmart campus preliminary plat

This artist rendering shows the redesign of the campus of Walmart's headquarters in Bentonville.
This artist rendering shows the redesign of the campus of Walmart's headquarters in Bentonville.

BENTONVILLE -- The Planning Commission on Tuesday night unanimously approved the preliminary plat for the new Walmart home office campus.

The site is on 322 acres and is zoned heavy industrial, general commercial and high-density residential. The city's land use map shows the area as general commercial, according to planning documents. The address is listed as 301 S.E. J St., according to planning documents.

The property boundaries can generally be described as Southeast 14th Street north to East Central Avenue, and Southeast J Street east to Southeast Moberly Lane, according to planning documents.

The preliminary plat is for the construction of infrastructure associated with the project. The plat will create lots one through four of the Walmart Campus Subdivision and dedicates a multitude of utility, drainage and access easements. The plans depict a variety of forms of street frontage landscaping and trail and sidewalk sections above and beyond the requirements of the land development code, according to the planning staff report.

For example, Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway is depicted as a four-lane arterial boulevard with a continuous 6-foot to 48-foot green space parkway and 10-foot to 12-foot wide trail section. The current street plan depicts the road as a local street, which would only require two travel lanes, a 5-foot wide sidewalk and a 5-foot wide green space, according to planning documents.

Southeast Eighth Street is depicted as a four-lane arterial boulevard with a variable width green space parkway and a sidewalk network varying in width from 6 feet to 12 feet.

The plans depict a variety of street tree plantings native to the region including tulip trees, shingle oaks, red oaks, willow oaks and Florida maples.

The applicant's streetscape plan depicts the roads interior to the campus as the following: Southeast Fifth Street: private (to be vacated), Southeast Eighth Street: public, Southeast 10th Street: private (to be vacated), Southeast P Street: private (to be vacated) and Southeast Martin Luther King Junior Parkway: public.

Other intersection improvements are depicted along Southeast J Street, Moberly Lane and East Central Avenue when intersecting with interior campus roads. The intersection improvements and the development of Southeast Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway and Southeast Eighth Street to arterial standards should help accommodate increases in traffic to the area.

The preliminary plat exceeds the minimum requirements of the land development code, according to the report.

"We have a robust plan of road, sidewalk and trail improvements that will help support the Bentonville Community Plan to link the eastern and western parts of the city," said Anne Hatfield, Walmart spokeswoman. "The roadside landscaping is consistent with our broader campus plan to connect associates with nature using native trees and plantings."

The road improvements are scheduled to be done in phases through the end of 2022, she said.

In other new business, planners denied a sidewalk waiver at 715 N.W. Eighth St. for Wedekind Properties and approved a lot split of lots 24 and 25 of Clarks Addition, 211 S.W. F St., a final plat for Rolling Acres Phase III, 4307 S.W. Wheatgrass Blvd., and the preliminary plat for Providence Village Phase III on Southwest Nomad Road.

Other items approved included a general plan amendment from mixed-use to high-density residential for G & I Properties, 1507 S.W. 14th St., and a conditional-use permit for a temporary storage area for United Industries on Southeast Fifth Street.

Commission Action

Items approved via the consent agenda by the Bentonville Planning Commission on Tuesday night.

Lot split

Lots five and six, Northwest Prairie Addition, 1701 N.W. F St.

Property line adjustments

Lot 11, Block two of Pritchard’s Addition, 703 N.W. Sixth St.

Lot 11, Block four, Young’s Addition, 802 S.E. Third St.

Large scale development

Oz Village, 806 N.W. A St.

Source: Bentonville Planning Commission

NW News on 06/03/2020

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