Article by Teisha Bagwell, White River Now
After a nearly two-hour public hearing Tuesday night, a motion by the Cave City Planning Commission for the approval of a city zoning plan failed by a vote of 6-2 due to uncertainty pertaining to citizen awareness of the issue.
Over the past year, the city of Cave City has worked closely with James Walden, the director of planning and development for the city of Conway, on a potential zoning plan and zoning map for the city.
Councilmember Hana Smith, who voted in favor of adopting the plan said, “Basically everything that we went through the past year to try to better our town, to try to bring a plan to our town, is for no reason. How much money did we pay?”
Mayor Jonas Anderson replied, “Fifteen [thousand] over the year and a half,” referring to the funds spent working on the potential zoning plans.
Currently, Cave City does not have any type of zoning regulation in place. Arkansas legislation requires a zoning plan and map to be in place before municipalities can impose ordinances pertaining to land use. This includes any action city officials can take to remedy anything on personal property that may be considered a nuisance or even a matter possibly threatening public health and safety.
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