City Council Agenda Session - August 12, 2025
City Council Agenda Session - August 12, 2025
The city council held an agenda session on August 12, 2025, to preview and discuss items scheduled for the upcoming city council meeting. Council members and staff reviewed consent agenda items, debated the proposed Renters Council and a firefighters bill of rights, addressed zoning petitions and short-term rental appeals, and introduced a walk-on resolution for a recycling and trash master plan.
Consent Calendar
- A1: Approval of meeting minutes.
- A2: Resolution to approve a two-year solid waste hauling agreement with Waste Management, with automatic renewals for two additional two-year terms.
- A3: Resolution to approve a similar agreement with Hogbox.
- A4: Budget adjustment of $30,296 recognizing 2025 CDBG program income from a housing lien payoff.
- A5: Resolution to approve the 2025 CDBG Action Plan and authorize the mayor to execute grant agreements totaling $1,270,869.67. Council members discussed the allocation, which is $39,643 more for CDBG and $22,151.78 more for HOME compared to last year. The formula for grant distribution is not publicly disclosed.
- A6: Resolution to convey a 1,930 sq ft right-of-way easement to SWEPCO for utility relocations associated with the Buddy Hayes Park Improvement Project. Staff provided an update: YRCC expansion is substantially complete; Buddy Hayes Park stream restoration is done; remaining work (seating, walls, sidewalks, curbs) will take about three months. Road impacts will be limited to lane closures.
- A7: Resolution to approve a one-year contract with Kutack Rock LLP for bond counsel services, with four one-year renewal options.
- A8: Resolution to authorize a grant agreement with NWA Regional Planning Commission for $203,317.25 for transit stock improvements, including matching funds from Ozark Regional Transit and Razorback Transit.
- A9: Resolution to approve purchase of six Peterville recycling trucks from Arkansas Municipal Equipment for $2,510,052. Council Member Turk requested removal from consent to new business.
- A10: Resolution to authorize an agreement with Crafton Tull & Associates for design phase services for the Gregg Avenue Safe Streets and Roads for All project, not to exceed $227,860.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No public comments were heard at this agenda session.
Discussion Items
- Renters Council (B1): Council discussed an ordinance to establish a Renters Council representing renters. The city attorney presented a draft amendment adding three landlord members to the nine-member committee. Council Member Berna expressed concerns about lack of full council input and represented resident desires for a fully renters council. She raised issues about the selection process (preferring the nominating committee), meeting frequency, and staffing/resourcing. Mayor Jordan advised against overly prescriptive staffing requirements. Council Member Jones noted that amendments could be made at the meeting. The discussion touched on balancing structure with flexibility.
- Salvation Army Matching Funds (B2): Council Member Teague requested tabling this item to the September 2 meeting to clarify funding sources. She expected the move to be approved at the city council meeting.
- Firefighters Bill of Rights (C1): Ordinance to provide basic protections for firefighters in personnel, disciplinary, and promotional actions, enabled by new state law. Staff noted Fayetteville already follows these policies, and the ordinance cements them. Chief Harden was absent.
- Zoning Petitions (C2-C4): C2: vacation of right-of-way at MLK Blvd and College Ave. C3: rezoning of ~180 acres of city park properties to P1 institutional (cleanup). C4: rezoning of ~66.78 acres at Double Springs and Tipton Road for a PZD with four components: townhomes, small-lot single-family, large-lot single-family, and open space. Staff recommended denial due to lack of services and infrastructure concerns. Planning commission forwarded it 7-2. Council discussed density and infrastructure; staff noted the property has been before council multiple times.
- Short-Term Rental Appeals (C5, C6): Appeals of conditional use permits for Type 2 short-term rentals at 421 and 463 West Isla Street. Procedural discussion: both appeals involve the same neighborhood and owner; they will be voted on separately. The sponsor may yield time to a neighbor. Enforcement details were mentioned jokingly.
- Recycling and Trash Master Plan Walk-On: Council Member Turk announced a resolution requesting a master plan for recycling and trash before the purchase of new trucks (A9). She asked for a timeline; staff estimated at least 9-12 months. Council discussed impact on workers and safety issues. The item will be placed on the new business agenda.
Key Outcomes
- Items Removed from Consent: A9 (recycling trucks) will be considered under new business.
- Connected Communities Workshop: Moved to September meeting.
- Energy Report: Moved to September 9 meeting.
- Renters Council: Further amendments expected at the city council meeting; the city attorney's draft with three landlords will be published prior.
- Salvation Army Funds: Expected to be tabled to September 2.
- Zoning and Appeals: All items will be heard at the city council meeting next week.
- Walk-On Resolution: To be added to the new business agenda.
Meeting Transcript
This is the agenda session for next week's city council meeting. Um the first thing we will have next week is a sales tax and monthly financial report from our CFO, Stephen Dotson. That cart is still on for next week. Okay. Um, and then connected communities workshop presentation, which I believe is moved to September. So if we can make a note on our um uh and then hopefully that was not a surprise for you to hear that it was moved to September, but it looks perhaps like it was. So let's we'll connect after, but if we um um Courtney, if you mind to remove that, we'll have that presentation okay at a later date. And then the consent agenda next week will start with A1. Um, it'll be approval of the minutes. A two, a resolution to approve an agreement with waste management for the hauling and disposal of solid waste in the city of Fayetteville for a period of two years with automatic renewals for two additional two-year terms. And I believe this is oh no, this is not the one. Never mind. Um Peter is here if you have questions about any of these. Um I'm gonna go through consent fairly quickly, but if you've got if you want to hear more about it, please just say so and we'll go more in depth. A three is a resolution to approve an agreement with Hogbox for the hauling and disposal of solid, not just oh no, this is just very similar. Solid waste in this city of payment though for a period of two years with automatic renewals for two additional two-year terms. A four is a resolution to approve a budget adjustment in the amount of 30,296 recognizing 2025 community development block grant program income received from a housing lien payoff. Item A5 is a resolution to approve the 2025 community development block grant action plan to authorize Mayor Rowan to execute the CDEG and home investment partnerships grant agreement for 2025 when received in the total amount of 1,270, 869 and 67 cents, and to approve a budget agenda. Kelly, do you mind if I'm up and talk more about this one? This is a good one we could see. So we've always care with us, but my questions in particular too. We're just trying to understand um why our history trying to go back in my memory bank. What's the 25ers versus like what our previous years have been, like what's changed? Um, so both of the grants saw a slight increase. Um, our CDBG allocation this year is $39,643 more than last year. And the home award is $22,151.78 cents more. So not a huge increase in either one, but an increase is an increase. Never a bad thing. And my uh other question about these is um I know there's a lot of discussion about the different factors. A lot of times that'll go into these and get weighted in the formulas about how the disbursements happened. Are there any potential letters that will be visible? Potentially maximizing or might be available to us that are opportunities of potential um fund dollars that we might. That is not that's not very forthcoming about what those levers are. We know they we know they exist and we know it's things like the percentage of your population that is LMI and things like that. You know, in broad terms, some of the things they look at, but they're pretty secretive about what that actual formula is. Okay, thank you. Sure. Um the next item, and Bob, we're on A6 with consent is a resolution to Mayor Ron to convey a 1,930 square foot ride of way and beasement to SWIPCO for utility relocations associated with the Buddy Hayes Park Improvement Project. I think we just have a question about the line on the buddy for the problem. Is that way to Adam? Wait. Sorry, I didn't move on to see you in a minute. So we can sort of talk about it. Yeah, no, it has been your own. So the uh YRCC expansion itself, we've uh we've done a push list last Friday. So we expect the building to be substantially complete in a week. So in a couple weeks, we'll be ready to move in. Uh Buddy Hayes Parks stream restoration is completed. And so now they're gonna be working on the other features. Uh the seating, boulder seating, retaining wall, sidewalks, curb, scutter.
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