Highlights of the Fort Smith Board of Directors Meeting 9/7/21
At the Fort Smith Board of Directors meeting held 9-7-21, the Board voted unanimously to extend the bike route designated as USBR51 through Fort Smith to include the Greg Smith River Trail and Fort Smith Historic Site. This designation is to encourage bicycle tourism and will be made via maps and signage.
Rezoning was approved to allow for ACHE to develop a health and wellness center at the former Beverly Enterprises headquarters location. The facility will include a medical research facility, wellness center, art gallery and art facilities that are part of a collaboration between Fort Smith’s Regional Art Museum and Van Buren’s Center for Art and Education, a ceramics lab, an applied arts lab for occupational and physical therapy with capabilities to 3D print adaptive devices on demand, exercise equipment, event space, kitchens, a theater, a 1 1/2 mile crushed granite walking trial, a canopy trail, a 3 mile bike trail, an outdoor classroom, an herb garden, and more.
The water and sewer expansions on Riverfront Drive were approved with all in favor but Director Catsavis. In addition to worries about costs and questions about finding cheaper alternatives brought up by several Directors, Catsavis expressed concerns regarding how decisions are made regarding utilities extensions. Sometimes developers have to pay for the utilities extensions they want, other times the city bears the cost. City Administrator Geffken responded that it tends to be based on the relative value of economic impact to the community from the proposed development. He explained that the Riverfront Drive extension was proposed as a city project because while the RV Park is the development that is ready to benefit from the extension immediately, other potential projects for Riverfront development in the future (including the possible baseball stadium and canopy trail) would benefit from it,too.
The Board voted unanimously on both measures related to building a new City website and communications platform. We can expect the new website to be live probably next May.
