Laura Jo Smole decried council’s decision to pursue moving meetings to 25 Norris. She said the decision was made without input or discussions. She questioned whether the property was appropriate for the intended use, and cited the lack of parking. She contended city meetings were not the best use of the building. Instead, it could be used for Eureka Springs Hospital physicians, which would also make it a revenue generator for the city. It might be better used as office space for city employees, such as the building inspector, or as a site for the filing cabinets filling up the hallways at the courthouse.
Harold Meyer pointed out that 25 Norris had “zero dedicated parking” and parking for those with handicaps was not nearby. He also asked if ESH wanted all the vehicles for city meetings in their parking lot.
Joyce Knowles said she put up a billboard near Clifty to bring attention to the sidewalk problem in Eureka Springs. City sidewalks are difficult for those with disabilities, and the city needs a new sidewalk survey. She also lamented the lack of enforcement of existing sidewalk laws. Knowles contended if the city offered rebates or incentives for property owners to keep their sidewalks in good repair, the problem could be solved within 10 years.
Chris Fischer again stated his concerns about the Parks Department making deals with the Northwest Arkansas Trailblazers and the Walton Family Foundation to construct downhill bike trails at Lake Leatherwood City Park. He was chagrined about the “narrowly-focused and rapid ecological assessment” of the project. He said the pursuit of a connected urban trail system is potentially constructive, but to embrace all potential benefits, Parks must consider future land use patterns. He claimed there is no comprehensive plan and potential problems have not been clarified. He said he has been active in his support of Parks, but asked them to develop a sound plan.
Pat Costner stated it was “regrettable that the Parks Commission approved and moved forward with the downhill trails project with no public notice and so no opportunity to provide information that would have allowed better-informed decisions to be made.” Her two primary concerns were potential liability and the attractive nuisance issue. She maintained there is case law that indicates the City may not be fully protected by Arkansas tort immunity law, and read from a legal decision which stated, “The immunity rule imposing the entire burden of municipal torts on the individual victims is patently unjust and can no longer be retained without an equally clear showing of an even greater harm to the public.”
Regarding attractive nuisance concerns, she asked, “Does Parks have a plan for preventing unplanned and unsupervised entry to the downhill park by adventurous children and youth wanting to ‘try out’ the trails on bikes, sleds or snowboards?”
And finally, the finale
Council approved seating the following on commissions:
- Planning – Theodore Cottingham
- HDC– John Nuckolls, Judy Holden
- Cemetery – L.B. Wilson, Susan Tharp, Jim Jordan.
- Berry noted there are vacancies on Planning, CAPC and Hospital.
Next meeting will be Monday, Feb. 26, at 6 p.m. There will be a budget workshop prior to the meeting at 5:15 p.m.