City Directors talk policy at Fort Smith Rotary forum

Infrastructure and quality-of-place improvements were the primary themes during a Fort Smith City Director forum conducted Wednesday by the Fort Smith Rotary Club.

City Directors Philip Merry Jr., Kevin Settle, Steve Tyler and Pam Weber took questions from about 60 Rotarians, with the first question seeking their thoughts on the most important issues facing the community.

Merry said the city and region should focus on funding for Interstate 49, the Regional Intermodal Transportation Authority, the U.S. Marshals Museum and continued Chaffee Crossing support and development.

“If we don’t embrace those great things, what are we saying to our youth?” Merry said.

Weber picked up on the youth theme, saying the city must be better positioned to retain and recruit college graduates.

“I want young people to come to Fort Smith,” Weber said, adding that community leaders must “move our game up” to become more attractive for younger generations.

Tyler thanked the Rotary for the forum opportunity because he sees a “disconnect” sometimes between what the board is doing and what the public knows. Tyler said he is excited about the potential for tourism support that will come from the 1% prepared food tax.

The tax was enacted Feb. 24 by the Fort Smith Board of Directors to resolve a more than 10-year search to plug an annual deficit predicted to occur when state turnback money dried up. The state turnback program ended for Fort Smith in June 2010 from which the city received about $1.8 million a year. The tax will go into effect June 1. Some proceeds of the tax may be used to support U.S. Marshals Museum operations, the Fort Smith Parks system, area festivals and other entertainment and tourism related venues and programs.

Tyler said tax proceeds may also help the city keep its commitment to building softball fields to replace those destroyed by the expansion of the Fort Smith National Cemetery.

Responding to another question about the 1% tax, Merry said he is confident surplus funds will be used to promote community tourism, especially if used to support the U.S. Marshals Museum. He said the museum’s estimated target of 165,000 visitors in the first year will prove a great benefit to the regional and state tourism industry.

Settle said future growth of Fort Smith “really boils down” to economic development and infrastructure improvements. Those improvements range from the need for a new fire station at Chaffee Crossing to improving facilities at Ben Geren Park.

Later in the forum, Rotarian and Sebastian County Quorum Court member Bob Schwartz asked Settle when the city would come back to the table and work with the county to expand Ben Geren.

“I hope within the next six months … to restart the whole process,” Settle said.

When asked how soon I-49 might be completed through western Arkansas, no clear answer emerged. Settle said it is more likely to be built in pieces, with the Bella Vista Bypass underway and, hopefully, a section connecting I-40 in Alma through Chaffee Crossing and to U.S. 71 South between Fort Smith and Greenwood. Merry, who said federal deficit and spending issues creates a “tough environment” to get “big dollars,” said there is a 75% chance I-49 could be complete through Arkansas in the next 10-15 years.

OTHER QUESTIONS
• Lobbyists
The city of Fort Smith pays Washington, D.C.-based Watts Partners $8,500 a month to help the city lobby members of Congress and federal agencies. Is the city getting a good deal? The directors at the forum agreed that it is a good deal. Merry said he has lobbied in D.C. for other groups, but was “thoroughly, thoroughly impressed” with the access to elected and appointed officials and their key staffers during a recent lobbying trip.

• Making decisions
A Rotarian said some members of the board have promised to do a better job of making decisions and not pushing problems down the road. Considering that promise, the Rotarian wanted to know why they delayed a vote to raise water and sewer connection fees up to a charge that allows the city to better recovery its costs.

Weber, who pushed for tabling the fee change during Tuesday’s board meeting, said the city did not adequately communicate with the real estate development sector. Merry and Weber said the delay will not be lengthy, and the fee structure will likely be changed to reflect true costs to provide service.

• New fire station
The city has estimated the cost of a new Chaffee Crossing fire station at just short of $3 million to build and equip. It will cost about $900,000 a year to operate. The city is pursuing federal grants to help pay for construction, but building and operating the new fire station will soon require the board to make serious budget decisions. So, how does the city pay for a new fire station at Chaffee Crossing?

Tyler said one option is re-instituting a business license fee. Previous estimates indicate a fee could raise $1.9 million a year.

“We’re obviously going to look at that,” Tyler said.