Fort Smith Directors look at zoning for Arkansas Colleges of Health Education, anticipate LOPFI ‘trainwreck’ 

The Fort Smith Board of Directors on Tuesday considered a Planned Zoning Development (PZD) request from the Arkansas Colleges of Health Education (ACHE) and discussed the ticking clock attached to the city’s LOPFI funding issue.

Leading off the session, City Directors heard from ACHE President and CEO Kyle Parker, who said the goal of the PZD is to develop all 228 acres as a traditional neighborhood development (TND), which allows for residential, retail, and mixed-use settings. According to the ACHE PZD booklet, this “will promote a sense of community and health awareness in a landscape of natural surroundings that complements the educational missions of the school and of the organization.”

Citing a Texas A&M study that showed higher life expectancy by an average of two years for individuals living within TNDs, Parker said such developments meant residents “don’t get in the car to go to the bank; they don’t get in the car to go to restaurants or take their kids to childcare.”

“You essentially exercise without knowing that you’re exercising,” Parker said, adding that TNDs promote a real “community approach” and allow you to “get to know your neighbors.”

For the design phase, ACHE has conferred with consultant Michael Watkins, who worked on the TND for Seaside, Fla. Watkins said his mission was to slow traffic and build a pedestrian-friendly area. Pending the Board’s approval of the request, which will appear on the Sept. 6 regular meeting agenda, Watkins and Pat Mickle of Mickle Wagner Coleman, will be able to forge a specific TND plan for ACHE.

The request has already been approved for the 113 acres on the Barling side of the ACHE land, and the Fort Smith Planning Commission has recommended approval. The only issue not yet worked out, according to Wally Bailey, the city’s development services director, is “an accommodation for the Fort Smith sanitation vehicles in the alleys and the turning radius needed for these vehicles.”

Also Tuesday, City Finance Director Jennifer Walker said staff is in the beginning stages of preparing the 2017 budget and requested that Directors define budget goals for the coming year. At the top of the Board’s list was the LOPFI funding issue. The city needs to find more than $2 million annually to keep the fire and police pension fund solvent beyond 2030.

At present, it’s not looking good. For 2016, the city needed to come up with $2.5 million and contributed only $700,000, Walker said. To this, City Director Keith Lau asked, “When is the trainwreck going to happen?”

City Administrator Carl Geffken, Walker confirming, said 2021 would be the date the city would no longer have a choice but to confront its revenue generation and expense problems. At that point, it is possible the city will have to begin cutting services.

For the year, revenues are down, causing finance to project 0% growth in revenues for 2017 sales tax, property tax, franchise fee, sanitation and street maintenance line items. Thanks to a widely unpopular sewer rate increase that takes effect Jan. 1, 2017, a mild growth of 2% will be projected for the water and sewer fund.

Tuesday’s (Aug. 23) study session was held at the Elm Grove Community Center.