[Fayetteville, Arkansas]

Actually... I didn't say they presented it to the council-it was presented to the opponents of the rezoning to try and get them to go along with it. You are right in that the council wasn't supposed to consider the development plan which they obviously didn't. They also weren't supposed to consider who they wanted to have the land either and I think that was the overriding reason for the denial. They favored the veterans group over the land owner and developer- which the city attorney made clear earlier was wrong and could open the city up to having it end in court. Of course, there is no way to prove the exact intent in this case but the fact that the Planning Commission and city staff approved the rezoning is a good indication that it was compatible. The fact that is was a downzoning from an industrial use to a residential use next to a cemetery and not far from other residential areas also show that it was compatible. It also would follow the development policies that the city has in place. If I were the land owner I would be looking to see if there was legal relief from this decision.

As far as the council member missing the vote when he was in the building right after the vote - that is a sad example of the lack of leadership and accountability that I spoke of earlier. When it has been reported that it would have been a tie vote with the mayor having to break the tie and this episode occurs it hurts the credibility of the whole process. The council has spent many meetings longer than this one discussing issues and tabling if needed- the vote could have been delayed a little longer or tabled again in order that all members had a say on this very hotly debated issue. For that matter, although we don't publicly know the reason for the absence the council member could have made clear to all what his situation was and asked for a delay until he was back.

I don't have a dog in this hunt as far as property in this area, so what I think doesn't mean a thing.

That being said... the Hill place apts. is really a burden on the area around it, noise, traffic, late night parties etc.. It is possible that the council members that voted to not rezone were looking at that.

If the property were to become a high rise condo complex with lower floor mixed use it probably would have gone the other way.

Hill place is new and already leaving a bad taste in some peoples' mouth. It will be hard to sell student complexes to the council.

[Fayetteville, Arkansas]

Yes, the developers bent over backwards to present a very good plan for the complex. They offered a 50 ft. buffer to the cemetery planted with native vegetation, density and heights limits beyond what was required, storm water dentention and a connection to the Frisco Trail. It would have been a much nicer complex than the apartments (that were barely mentioned) just south of the cemetery and a much better neighbor than the automotive garage immediately south of the cemetery. For the council members who voted against the rezoning to say it was about compatibility is like telling us the Emperor has new clothes. Well guess what- the Emperor has no clothes! The council and mayor are elected to represent the good of Fayetteville and it's citizens only and to uphold the laws and policies of the city. I don't think this action did and the sale barn land owner is paying the price.

Zman, you say the developers presented a plan at the council meeting. What you neglected to say is the council was not voting on a development plan.

The council was voting on a rezoning of the property. You might try to understand the council cannot vote on a concideration of something that is not on the table.

If the developers purchase the property and then go through the planning commission with a development plan it would be a vote on the development.

When this neighborhood goes through the Walker park and Fayette Junction type master plan process this land will probably be rezoned to downtown general.

Until that time you have to have a reason to rezone, not just a request to rezone.

The criteria for consideration is pretty narrow.

Whatever you do, don't listen to Matt Petty to figure out the process.

Another comment is Robert Rhoads misses lots of votes. Look at his voting record as compared to the rest of the City Council. If the council had rules like most of the city boards he would have been tossed out a long time ago for poor attendance.

Sorry to be so negative, it's just when you deal with the city you have to play by the rules. If you don't like the rules then run for council and change them.

[Fayetteville, Arkansas]

The Fayetteville Forward Summit was great for getting input from the public but it shouldn't be used as the primary means of setting priorities by the council. Only a small percentage of the city's population showed up at summit and the council represents all of the residents in the city. Special interests groups were well represented at the summit and had a much larger influence on what was decided than what they make of in population of the city. They will also dominate the discussion on the city website if it is used as a prmary means of gettng public input.

The city council and mayor office were elected to represent all of Fayetteville and not just the most outspoken groups. They need to used all the information sources available to them in making policy- not just a small proportion of the city residents.

If you don't support the Fayetteville Forward Summit as a means to a plan, why would you support the Dover/Kohl 2025 plan? Dover was attended by a much more select smaller group and the ideas to expound upon were fed to you by the planners. It would seem to me that the summit with the input of a larger more diverse group is a better representation of the direction Fayetteville wants to proceed.

The state of the current economic downturn will also be a huge determining factor in future development ideals.

Light rail is not being driven by the desire for a more dense urban city center, conversely it is being heralded by the need for people to reduce their need for money consuming transportation, the end result is the same but the determining factors are driven by a more diverse need.