Alexander American Legion Post says “Thank You” to city officials

There was a surprise waiting for City of Alexander council members and the mayor near the end of their November 19 meeting. Dale Mulkey, commander of the Alexander American Legion Post 28-Ar, presented commendation certificates to Mayor Paul Mitchell and council members in recognition for their support of the legion post.

“You’ve never turned us down,” Mulkey said before handing out the certificates.

The city council has allowed post members to use the city community center (old city hall) as a meeting place. In October they also allowed post members use of the city park to hold a fund raiser.

The post was founded by area veterans earlier this year and has already been granted its permanent charter Mulkey said at the council meeting. Both Mulkey and Alderman Harold Timmerman are founding members of the post, which has now reached a total of 25 members.

Construction to begin soon at two Alexander locations

Now that the Alexander city council has approved rezoning a 
one-acre lot in the original part of the city and approved construction plans in south Alexander, there will be a noticeable change in two of the city’s better-known vacant lots. In the area of the city where Alexander began, a long-time vacant lot surrounded by E. 1^st Street, A.C. Wallace Avenue and E. 2^nd Street will be the site of 14 two-bedroom apartments housed in three buildings. An office building at the southeast corner of E. Azalea and South Alexander Road will be the new home of RBD Construction/Hale Steel.

At the November 19 council meeting Jonathon Hope, of Hope Consulting, told council members construction on the apartment buildings is expected to begin in January. Robert Hale, of Hale Steel, said they have a plumber ready to begin. Once that’s completed the concrete floor will be poured.

A rezoning hearing for the property along A.C. Wallace Avenue was held by the Alexander Planning Commission Thursday, November 15. The hearing gave nearby residents the opportunity to comment as to whether the property should be rezoned from R-1 
Single-Family to R-2 Multi-Family. Only one person attended the hearing and said he had no objections.

At the hearing Hope explained the project will require new drainage and a waterline extended from E. 2^nd Street, along A.C. Wallace Avenue, to E. 1^st Street with a fire hydrant at the end. The three one-story buildings will include a five-unit building facing E. 1^st Street, a seven-unit building facing A.C. Wallace Avenue and a duplex will face E. 2^nd Street. There will be a parking area in front of each building.

After the public hearing the planning commission held a special meeting. It was at that meeting the commission members decided to recommend to the city council the rezoning of the one-acre lot from R-1 Single-Family to R-2 Multi-Family.

Also at the special meeting of the planning commission, Robert Hale presented the company’s office building proposal. The issue of whether the property was properly zoned was discussed.

In 2013 the city council, at that time, was presented with a request by Hale Steel to zone the back half “Industrial” and the front half “Commercial.” Hale Steel, known for the construction of steel buildings, proceeded to build a fabrication shop on the rear of the property at E. Azalea and South Alexander Road.

Planning commission member Juanita Wilson, who was on the council at the time and who is a member of the current city council, remembers voting to approve the request. However, as best as can be determined, that approval was never followed up with a zoning hearing or ordinance. And, as yet, the minutes of that meeting have not been found.

Even though a zoning ordinance was never brought to the 2013 council for approval, commission members decided to accept the vote of that city council as legitimate. Planning commission members voted to recommend to the city council that the office building plans be accepted and the council should give Mayor Paul Mitchell permission to sign-off on the building permit.

At the council meeting Hale said after RBD Construction and Hale Steel merged it was decided they need to all be in one office building. RBD currently leases office space in North Little Rock but when the construction of the new office building in Alexander is completed the entire company will move to one location.

Also at the November 19 council meeting;

A resolution amending the 2018 budget was approved. Interim Treasurer JoAn Churchill told council members there will be one more amendment needed at the end of the year when the last of the payroll is processed and the last of the year’s revenue from the state is received.

The council agreed to accept the offer of $8,000 to buy property across from the Alexander Central Fire Station on South Alexander Road. According to Fire Chief Mark Ridgeway the property in question has been an on-going issue with the city’s code enforcement officer. He also told council members once the property is cleaned the fire department can use it to conduct fire department related activities.

Council members gave the mayor permission to convert any hourly positions to salary where legally possible. Both Mayor Mitchell and Interim Treasurer JoAn Churchill told council members having more employees on salary will streamline the payroll process and make it easier to write a budget.

The next monthly meeting of the Alexander City Council will be held Monday, December 17, 6 PM, in the courtroom in city hall. The public is encouraged to attend.

Heavy agenda for Alexander City Council

The Alexander City Council will have a busy night at its next council meeting. Three action items and one item for discussion are scheduled for the Monday, November 19 meeting.

In the action category council members will be asked to approve a resolution amending the 2018 budget, approve the “Purchase of property next to Alexander Central Fire Station” and a rezoning ordinance. The only item labeled for discussion is, “Hourly to salary wages.”

One item on the agenda, that won’t be needed, concerns a proposed ordinance that was expected to be recommended by the city’s planning commission for council approval. At a special meeting held last Thursday (November 15) the planning commission discussed how to handle a building permit request by Hale Steel.

The company, known for its metal buildings, is ready to construct its permanent corporate offices at the southeast corner of E. Azalea and South Alexander Road. The question is whether the property was ever legally zoned commercial.

In 2013 the city council, at that time, was presented with a request by the company to zone the back half “Industrial” and the front half “Commercial.” Planning commission member Juanita Wilson, who was on the council at the time and who is a member of the current city council, remembers voting to approve the request. However, as best as can be determined, that approval was never followed up with a zoning hearing or ordinance. And, as yet, the minutes of that meeting have yet to uncovered.

In order to temporarily solve zoning issues in south Alexander, until a new zoning map can be drawn and approved, planning commission members, at the Thursday night special meeting, considered recommending the council approve an all-inclusive ordinance that would have zoned all of what was Woodland Hills based on the designs of its developer Charley Martin. That idea was scrapped in lieu of recognition of the 2013 vote as legitimate. Council members now will only be asked to approve the building plans and give the mayor permission to sign-off on the building permit.

The main purpose of the planning commission’s special meeting was as a follow-up to a rezoning hearing held that night. Commission members agreed to recommend the city council approve a one-acre lot, surrounded by E. 1^st Street, A.C. Wallace Street and E. 2^nd Street be rezoned from R-1 Single-Family to R-2 Multi-Family. Construction on the 14, two-bedroom apartments is expected to begin in January. The rezoning ordinance is listed above. (See article below for further information.)

The monthly meeting of the Alexander City Council will be held Monday, November 15, 6 PM, in the courtroom in city hall. The public is encouraged to attend.

Alexander Planning Commission sends rezoning ordinance to council, recommends construction of office building

During a special meeting the Alexander Planning Commission agreed to recommend to the city council that an ordinance be approved that will rezone a vacant lot from R-1 Single-Family to
R-2 Multi-Family. The one-acre property is surrounded by E. 1^st Street, E. 2^nd Street and A.C. Wallace Street.

Only one person who lives near the lot attended the public hearing, which was held prior to the planning commission meeting Thursday evening November 15. He had no objection to the rezoning.

The construction plans were presented by Jonathon Hope of Hope Consulting, Benton, representing Heritage Homes & Development of Central Arkansas. The plan is to build three one-story buildings that will provide a total of 14, two-bedroom, apartment units. A building with five-units will face E. 1^st Street, a seven-unit building will face A.C. Wallace Street and a duplex will face E. 2^nd Street. There will be a parking area in front of each building.

According to Hope, a new waterline will be connected to the existing line at E. 2^nd Street and extended along A.C. Wallace ending near E. 1^st Street. Besides providing water service to most of the apartments, the end of the waterline will include a fire hydrant. Drainage improvements are also included in their plans. Actual construction is expected to begin January.

Planning commission members also heard from Robert Hale of Hale Steel, which owns the property on the southeast corner of E. Azalea and South Alexander Road. Hale has applied for a building permit to construct an office building for the company. Currently, Hale Steel is leasing office space in North Little Rock.

Hale Steel is known for constructing steel buildings. In 2013 Hale built a fabrication shop on the rear of the property. With the addition of the office building the entire company will be in one location. Once the new building is in place Hale said they plan to build an entrance driveway off South Alexander Road for the trucks. They will then exit onto E. Azalea.

Street Superintendent David Durham attended the meeting to discuss drainage concerns. Durham said the street department already has plans to replace the culvert, which is under Alton Drive where it connects with South Alexander Road. Alton Drive is on the opposite side of the property from E. Azalea.

Planning commission members approved a recommendation to the city council that the building plans be accepted and the building permit be issued. The council’s next meeting is this Monday, November 19. It’s expected the mayor will sign the permit Tuesday.

The council meeting is at 6 PM in the courtroom at city hall. The public is encouraged to attend.

Alexander Planning Commission to hold rezoning hearing and Special Meeting this Thursday

The City of Alexander Planning Commission has scheduled a rezoning hearing for a nearly one-acre vacant lot in the old part of the city. The hearing is to allow residents to provide input on whether the lot at 13411 E. 1st Street should be rezoned from R-1 Single-Family to R-2 Multi-Family. The lot is in the block surrounded by E. 1^st Street, A.C. Wallace Street and E. 2^nd Street. Property owners within 300 feet of the property have been notified by mail of the rezoning request.

The development is being proposed by Heritage Homes & Development of Central Arkansas. The plan is to build three one-story buildings that will provide a total of 14 units. A five-unit apartment building will face E. 1^st Street, a seven-unit building will face A.C. Wallace Street and a duplex will face E. 2^nd Street.

The hearing is scheduled for this Thursday, November 15, 6 PM in the courtroom at city hall. Jonathan Hope, of Hope Consulting in Benton, will give a presentation explaining the development and answer questions.

Following the hearing, or starting at 6:15 PM, the planning commission will discuss the rezoning proposal and whether to recommend to the city council if the rezoning request should be approved. Only the city council can approve rezoning property.

Another issue is also on the planning commission’s agenda for that meeting. Hale Steel is preparing to build offices at the corner of East Azalea and South Alexander Road. Robert Hale will be presenting drawings of the proposed development.

The plan is to place an office building on the front-half of the property, affectionately known by long-time residents as “The Pit.” The back-half already has a metal building, constructed in 2013, to store equipment. Hale Steel is known for the construction of metal buildings.

Hale Steel has submitted a building permit request to the city. However, there is a question concerning zoning.

When what is now known as South Alexander, formerly Woodland Hills, was annexed in 2006 the planning commission at the time, and Mayor Shirley Johnson, never followed up with a new zoning map to cover the expanded city.

Prior to the annexation Woodland Hills was under the control of Saline County. But, counties in Arkansas don’t establish zoning districts, therefore, there is no automatic transfer of zones from county control to municipal control.

One solution being presented to planning commission members is a proposed ordinance that would establish zoning districts, in what was Woodland Hills, based on the bill of assurance written for each piece of property by the developer Charley D. Martin. A bill of assurance covers many aspects as to how a developer wants the property he sells to be used in order to maintain the vision of the development. One of those design aspects is whether property is intended for residential or commercial use. The proposed ordinance has been sent to the city attorney for review.

The planning commission has been working on a new zoning ordinance that will replace the current regulations approved in 1982. A new zoning map will be included that will establish districts based on current use. The zoning ordinance was sent to the city attorney for legal review last month. Commissioners expect to begin working on the zoning map in December or February.

Many turned out for car show and fund raiser at Alexander Park

There was no shortage of both classic and modern cars to drool over at the car show Saturday. All types, makes and models filled the parking lot in the City of Alexander Park.

Four judges selected winners for first, second and third place in six categories. There was also a “People’s Choice” winner based on votes by everyone who purchased a ticket. Anyone buying a ticket also had a chance at winning a prize.

The event was sponsored by the Apostolic Christian Center in Benton. Besides the car show Jordan’s BBQ was there selling their famous barbecue and catfish. There was also a bake sale. All proceeds, including the purchase of food from Jordan’s, went to benefit Lifeline Ministries of Haiti and The Call of Benton, Arkansas.

(EDITOR'S NOTE: I only know what the judges wrote down.)