The city council examined a proposal to purchase three acres on Glasgow Road, priced at $57,000, for a future replacement for Fire Station No. 3.
Mayor Peter Christie said the corner lot is a good location for a new station to replace the aging one that was built on Glasgow Road near Branchwood in 1986. While the city is not ready to build this station, he said it's important to be ready for it in future budget cycles.
The land, which is currently owned by Cooper, comes in at $19,000 per acre, which is under the going rate of about $20,000 to $21,000 per acre, he said.
"This is looking into the future now," he said.
Fire Chief Steve Sims has previously said that the existing station facility can only fit two people, which is just enough to crew a single vehicle. The station currently has a single fire truck, which is used for first response in medical emergencies while an ambulance is also sent from Fire Station No. 4 to provide patient transportation if needed.
A new facility could provide space to better staff the Highlands area.
"The overall goal is to put an ambulance back out there," Sims said.
Christie said that while the city is interested in acquiring land, the city needs to figure out how to fund the actual construction before it can consider actually building a station.
"That's going to be a much larger discussion," he said.
The council also discussed an ordinance to grant Black Hills Energy Arkansas Inc. a natural gas franchise within Bella Vista, with the authority to "operate, maintain and extend a natural gas distribution plant and system" into the city.
Christie explained that the energy company currently plans to extend a line north into the city to supply gas to a restaurant that is expected to open in the shopping center that will be built between Walgreens and the Crye Leike building, just North of U.S. 71's intersection with Benton County 40.
Christie said he does not anticipate the energy company will want to move further into the city, particularly for residential customers, because it will need to secure access across property easements controlled by Cooper.
"They're not prepared to go in on the residential side," he said.
The council also examined a partial vacation of a subdivision plat, temporary staffing for seasonal right-of-way mowing and appointments to the board of construction appeals and the arts council.
General News on 03/20/2019