by - February 4, 2025 7:53 pm
Fort Smith Board tables sewer rate increase
The Fort Smith Board of Directors on Tuesday (Feb. 4) tabled an ordinance that would raise sewer rates by 3.5% beginning in June and raising rates every year for the…
Tag: Fort Smith consent decree
by - October 16, 2024 11:39 am
Fort Smith consent decree modification meeting could happen before Thanksgiving
A consent decree modification meeting between City of Fort Smith and federal officials could happen before Thanksgiving but it could be as late as the second quarter of 2025 when…
by - September 17, 2024 9:11 pm
Fort Smith Board approves path to negotiate consent decree modification
The Fort Smith Board of Directors voted unanimously Tuesday (Sept. 17) to allow city administration to negotiate for better terms under what has been a costly federal consent decree mandating…
by - September 11, 2024 3:36 pm
Low sewer rate hikes focus of effort to modify Fort Smith consent decree
City Administrator Carl Geffken presented a number of proposals to take to the Department of Justice for consent decree modification to the Board of Directors Tuesday night (Sept. 10) requesting…
by - September 3, 2024 8:49 pm
Fort Smith consent decree modification plan vote tabled to Sept. 17
With the goal of getting more financial details and allowing more time for public hearings, the Fort Smith Board of Directors on Tuesday (Sept. 3) tabled a resolution allowing city…
by - August 30, 2024 5:31 pm
Fort Smith faces up to $25 million in consent decree penalties
The City of Fort Smith faces a possible $25 million penalty if state and federal officials do not approve a city plan to modify a federal consent decree mandating sewer…
by - August 27, 2024 10:26 pm
Attorney: ’Significant’ plan needed for Fort Smith to receive consent decree extension
The City of Fort Smith has a tall task in front of it to convince federal agencies to give the city relief on a consent decree mandating sewer system work….
by - August 24, 2024 12:25 pm
Possible consent decree change on Fort Smith Board agenda
The City of Fort Smith could receive an extension to 2036 on a federal consent decree mandating costly sewer system improvements. If provided, it would total 10 years of extensions…
by - November 8, 2023 5:33 pm
Fort Smith consent decree work could total $428 million in next 12 years
The Fort Smith Utility Department has prepared a consent decree capital improvement plan (CIP) calling for spending $428.068 million over a 12 year period in order to comply with a…
by - September 14, 2022 3:19 pm
Fort Smith loses appeal on consent decree relief request
An 8th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling means the city of Fort Smith will have to repair all grade 4 and 5 lines in the city’s sewer system, which could…
by - July 21, 2022 3:21 pm
Director eval of Fort Smith city boss still pending
While a formal mid-year evaluation of the Fort Smith city administrator has not yet occurred, at least some on the Fort Smith Board of Directors are looking at goals for…
by - May 24, 2022 10:34 pm
Fort Smith voters approve sales tax extensions
Fort Smith voters on Tuesday (May 24) extended two sales tax extensions that will pay for federally mandated sewer system improvements, an across-the-board police pay increase of 23.87%, fire department…
by - January 20, 2022 9:03 pm
Fort Smith Board pushes need for sales tax extension at first public discussion
In the first of five scheduled sales tax information and discussion meetings held by Fort Smith City Directors Thursday night (Jan. 20) concerning a possible election to continue two sales…
by - September 8, 2021 4:25 pm
Feds reject Fort Smith’s effort to reduce consent decree requirements
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) responded to an appeal by the city of Fort Smith concerning the consent decree the city…
by - August 24, 2021 7:46 pm
Consent decree costs could rise to $650 million; Fort Smith officials hope for more time
While some members of the Fort Smith Board of Directors believe there is little hope the city can meet demands of the consent decree the city is under for its…
by - August 11, 2021 6:13 pm
$22 million water treatment plan fix presented to Fort Smith Board
A plan to replace part of the Massard Water Reclamation Facility (formerly the Massard Wastewater Treatment Plant) before it fails and severely impacts Fort Smith’s ability to treat water on the…
by - June 22, 2021 10:02 pm
Fort Smith consent decree may result in more rate hikes; one director ready for a legal ‘fight’
Even with a five-year extension for needed sewer improvement work in Fort Smith, completion of the work required by a federal consent decree could lead to significant sewer rate increase…
by - October 27, 2020 7:58 pm
Fort Smith Board reviews $609.5 million 10-year plan for utility work
The Fort Smith Utility Department presented a $609.5 million 10-year capital improvement plan for 2021 through 2030 to the Fort Smith Board of Directors on Tuesday (Oct. 27). The ten-year…
by - May 8, 2020 6:04 pm
Fort Smith receives an extra five years to meet consent decree terms
On Thursday (May 7) the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) agreed that the city has proved that the sewer improvement program…
by - April 21, 2020 7:46 pm
Feds not providing Fort Smith consent decree relief
The feds aren’t giving the city of Fort Smith a break on the estimated $480 million consent decree despite the impact of historic flooding in 2019 and the ongoing COVID-19…