The Hot Springs Board of Directors' appointment of four new members and reappointment of an incumbent to the city's planning commission last month gave the 12-seat panel 11 members.
The board appointed former city director and planning commission member Rick Ramick to Position 7, the panel's at-large seat. He succeeded Charles Smith. Ramick's term runs through May 1, 2023. Brian White was reappointed to a third and final term as Position 4 commissioner. His term also expires May 1, 2023. He and Ramick also serve on the Board of Zoning Adjustment.
Baker Jackson Goldsmith was appointed to the vacant alternate position. The three-year term for the co-owner of Gold-Inn Hot Springs on Park Avenue expires May 1, 2023. The panel has three alternate positions.
Local baseball historian Mike Dugan was appointed to serve the remainder of the Position 6 term from which Dr. Hal Koppel resigned. The term expires next May.
James Bart Newman was appointed to serve the remainder of the alternate position formerly held by Emmily Tiampati. Newman, who owns an insurance company, will serve until May 1, 2022.
Position 8, which is reserved for residents of the city's planning area, territory extending up to 1 mile beyond the city limits that's subject to the city's subdivision code but not its building code, is vacant.
The newly installed commissioners heard a controversial rezoning request for 2105 Malvern Ave. at the June 11 meeting. More than 70 residents and businesses wrote emails and letters in opposition to the zone change, which the commission denied by a vote of 7-2.
Applicant Merano LLC requested the 2-acre parcel between Lakeside Road and Suburban Drive be rezoned from suburban residential to neighborhood commercial, telling the city's planning and development department that the rezone "fulfills a public need for land so-zoned."
Planning staff disagreed, recommending the commission not endorse the motion to approve.
"The application fails to demonstrate convincingly that a zone change from R-2 to C-3 will not materially or adversely affect the neighborhood," the department said in its findings. "The application fails to demonstrate a public need for land so-zoned as more than a dozen undeveloped C-3 properties can be identified on the zoning map within 1 mile of the subject lots. Hot Springs code requirements for zone change are not met."
Planning and Development Director Kathy Sellman said the applicant didn't state what it intended to build on the parcel if it were rezoned.
Neighborhood residents cited the increased traffic a commercial development would bring to an already busy stretch of Malvern Avenue. Arkansas Department of Transportation has said the area's daily vehicle counts ranged from 15,000 to 16,000 from 2012 to 2018. It plans to install a traffic signal at the Lakeside Road intersection.
Hot Springs Golf and Country Club's opposition letter said a commercial development on the other side of Malvern poses a danger to its members, guests and motorists who use Country Club Drive to access Malvern.
"Adults, as well as teenagers, using the facilities of Hot Springs Country Club navigate Malvern Avenue with trepidation due to the speed of the traffic on this hilly curve where multiple accidents have occurred over the years," the club's letter said. "The HSCC has safe travel concerns as it gives access to the sports teams of local school districts for practice and tournaments."
The letter said the club would reconsider its opposition if a traffic signal were placed at Country Club Drive in addition to the one going in at Lakeside Road.
Earlier this year, the commission and city board approved an amendment to the planned development zone at 1875 Malvern Ave., a few blocks north of the parcel where the zoning change was denied. The amendment added a doughnut shop to the list of approved uses for the planned development, which was formerly a bank.
A planned development is a site-specific designation where regulations are relaxed to encourage innovative design. It requires applicants to submit a detailed site plan and list of uses.
"It got neighborhood attention, but it wasn't the same kind of scale as if you changed from residential to commercial," Sellman said. "It was an alteration of a commercial use to a different commercial use."
[NOTE: There has been a clarification to this article, which states that Dr. Hal Koppel resigned from Position 6 on the Hot Springs Planning Commission. The city told the newspaper Koppel resigned but agreed to serve until replaced.
“He kept on coming to meetings, serving months, if not years, until a new commissioner was named by the (Hot Springs Board of Directors) to fill his seat,” Planning and Development Director Kathy Sellman said Tuesday. “His service was extraordinary.”
Koppel served until Mike Dugan was appointed last month to serve the remainder of the term that expires next May.]