Tensions flare over Riley Farm Health & Rehab facility, planning commission votes against

The Fort Smith Planning Commission denied conditional use and variance requests for a proposed Riley Farm Health & Rehab facility at 6301 Riley Park Drive that would have employed 120.

Hearing arguments during a Thursday night (Nov. 10) meeting from a packed exhibit hall at the Fort Smith Convention Center, the commission first received an overview of the project from Pat Mickle, the facility’s agent, before being confronted with a petition featuring the signatures of 267 property owners out of 413 total in the Riley Farm neighborhood.

The dispute raged over a 14-acre parcel of land owned by Cavanaugh Free Will Baptist Church. The church purchased the land in 2001, but later decided to sell. Riley Farm covenants will not allow for a building greater than 40,000 square feet at the location, and the church struggled to find a buyer until Riley Farm Health & Rehab’s proposal of an 88,000 square foot nursing care facility.

However, property owners claim increased traffic congestion and the busy nature of a 24/7 business would fundamentally transform the neighborhood and lower property values. They also warned of a stipulation in Riley Farm Health & Rehab’s proposal to come back later with a conditional use request for an additional 77,000 square foot assisted living facility.

While detractors acknowledged the facility would support jobs, one resident claimed they were “low-paying, high-turnover jobs.”

Another warned a sudden influx of traffic could increase safety risks for neighborhood children and pedestrians. Janie Johnston, president of the Riley Farm Property Owners Association, called the planned development “a small-scale hospital” and said it would “be located on the main thoroughfare in and out of the neighborhood.”

Johnston told Talk Business & Politics that property owners objected to the builder’s request because their neighborhood was not zoned for a building of that size, adding “the size and scale of it is way out of proportion for the neighborhood.” Johnston and several others spoke out against the request, including one man, who drew boos from Cavanaugh Free Will Baptist representatives and his own side when he said the Planning Commission was on the verge of making a mistake “because of the greed of one church.”

Commissioners defeated the request with four votes against, three votes for, and one abstention, but that did not stop commissioner Sarah Howe — one of the “against” — from admonishing the man, stating, “Sir, you have offended everyone in this room.”

From here, Cavanaugh Free Will Baptist Church can pursue an appeal to the Fort Smith Board of Directors. It wasn’t clear on Thursday night whether that would happen, but builder Rocky Walker, also a resident of Riley Farm in support of the requests, said he was “thrilled a local Arkansas company that is good at what it does would want to invest in our neighborhood.”

“A conditional use permit is not unusual. This will bring economic heat and energy to the area. There is a demand for this facility, and it’s something we desperately need,” Walker said.