SEE UPDATE IN BOLD: 02/11/2022
Most of the time a meeting of the Alexander Planning Commission
consists of members either talking to an empty room, or dealing with
the occasional rezoning or development issue. This time the courtroom
wasn’t empty but there weren’t enough commission members present
to hold a meeting.
The lack of a quorum
kept the only two planning commissioners present from holding a
regular meeting. The required number for a quorum is three and two
out of the four commissioners could not attend. Present at the
February 8 meeting were Chairman Michel Huck and commission member
Juanita Wilson. Wilson is also a member of the Alexander City
Council.
Normally, the
meeting would have been canceled and rescheduled for a later date.
But, Bernadette Rhodes, Community Planner from Metroplan, was present
to give an orientation for members of the newly formed Citizens
Advisory Committee. Also present was local businessman Walter Burgess
who has offered to join the advisory committee.
The committee was
formed to provide planning commission members with opinions to aid in
the writing of the new Master Development Plan. The current plan
dates back to 1982.
Since everyone else
was present, it was decided to have an informal public meeting.
Walter Burgess was allowed to speak first to explain why he should be
allowed to sit on the Citizens Advisory Committee.
Burgess is part
owner and Vice-President of Sales & Engineering at Power
Technology, Inc. in Alexander. Power Technology has been in Alexander
22 years and is located along Highway 111 south of the I-30
interchange.
Although he lives in
Bryant, Burgess has volunteered to join the advisory committee as a,
“Business resident of Alexander, not as a citizen of Alexander.”
“I care about what
happens here in Alexander,” he said.
Burgess said he is
currently working on his professional certification for economic
development through the International Economic Development Council,
which he pointed out might be helpful as a member of the advisory
committee.
He is the current
Vice-Chairman of the Bryant Planning Commission. He emphasized he
would not serve, “[I]n any official capacity related to (the)
Bryant Planning Commission.”
He also serves on
the board of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission and is
Vice-Chairman of the Arkansas Science & Technology Board where he
helps to administer approximately $2 $4.5 million annually to support
entrepreneurs, small businesses, growth and job creation.
Since first
contacting Planning Commission Chairman Michael Huck about joining
the advisory committee, Burgess announced his run for the Arkansas
House of Representatives for District 81. The district includes a
portion of Bryant, the Saline County portion of Alexander and Shannon
Hills.
“For clear
disclosure, just so there’s no confusion and nothing sinister, I’m
also running for House of Representatives to represent Bryant,
Shannon Hills and Alexander,” he said. “Conversations (with
chairman) about (joining) this committee predate any considerations I
had running for office. This is a rather recent development late last
year.”
Burgess summarized
by saying he feels all of his experiences make him “Uniquely
qualified” to serve on the advisory committee.
Huck noted that
under the circumstances of not having a quorum, no decision can be
made as to placing Burgess on the advisory committee. Huck said he
will try to schedule a special meeting in March to make up for the
February meeting. The planning commission has regularly scheduled
meetings in February, April, June, August, October, and December.
Besides Huck,
Wilson, Burgess, and Rhodes; others attending the meeting were
advisory committee members Angela Griffin and Lorinda Peoples; Ward-1
Council Member Joe Pollard; Cheryl Kindervater, Administrative
Assistant for the City of Alexander; and Casey Covington, Metroplan
Deputy Director and Director of the Central Arkansas Regional
Transportation Study (CARTS).
“We are here to
support the planning commission and the city,” Rhodes began. “We
were requested to assist in the comprehensive plan update.”
Rhodes began the
orientation with a run-down of the steps accomplished to date. As
required under state law, the first step was the writing of the
Planning Studies Report. The report provides details about the city
including the type of government, the various city departments,
available utilities, amenities, educational opportunities, available
employment, what types of commercial and residential housing is
available, and a breakdown of the residents based on recent census
data.
“It’s an effort
to understand where the city’s at right now,” Rhodes said. “And
then, the comprehensive planning process is an attempt to look into
the future, to get citizens’ involvement. That’s where the
Citizens Advisory Committee comes in. Working hand-in-hand with the
planning commission to identify some concrete goals.”
The next step was
the community survey. The survey was a list of questions allowing
residents to provide input on a range of topics including development
priorities, traffic and city amenities, among others.
“Step number three
is to create a Citizens Advisory Committee,” Rhodes said. “And,
step number four is for the commission and that committee to get
together; organize, promote, promote, promote. Get people together to
do a public involvement meeting.”
The public meeting
will involve exercises to draw opinions out of people, allowing
everyone the opportunity to participate. Rhodes said the idea is to
not allow one person to “Dominate” the conversation.
“It’s not the
planning commission’s plan, or the council’s plan, or one
neighborhood’s plan,” she said. “It’s the entire city’s
plan.”
Where and when to
hold the public meeting is the next issue. Since the hope is for a
large turnout, and room will be needed to breakup into smaller
groups, the two options are the metal building at the former Human
Development Center, or a church hall. During the daytime on a
Saturday was suggested in order to not have this meeting on a school
night.
Rhodes said once all
the information and comments are collected they will write a first
draft of a comprehensive development plan. That initial draft will be
reviewed by the planning commission and the citizens advisory
committee for feed-back and possible changes.
Eventually, a
proposed final draft will be presented at a public haring. At that
time residents will be given the opportunity to comment on the plan.
Metroplan is a quasi
government agency dedicated to providing general planning, mapping,
and technical assistance to local governments in Central Arkansas.
It’s major role is to work with local governments, the Arkansas
Department of Transportation, and local transit providers to
determine transportation needs and funding priorities for Federal
transportation investments. Alexander pays an annual fee to be a
member of Metroplan, allowing the city to take advantage of its
services.
