HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-684
Paxton, Kara
From:CityClerk
Sent:Tuesday, May 2, 2023 12:14 PM
To:Batker, Jodi; Berna, Scott; Bolinger, Bonnie; Brown, Chris; Bunch, Sarah; CityClerk;
Curth, Jonathan; Fondren, Chanci; Harvey, Sonia; Hertzberg, Holly; Jones, D'Andre;
Jordan, Lioneld; Moore, Sarah; Mulford, Patti; Norton, Susan; Paxton, Kara;
Pennington, Blake; Ramirez, Jonathan; Rea, Christine; Rogers, Kristin; Shelton, Jackson;
Spohn, Courtney; Thurber, Lisa; Turk, Teresa; Wiederkehr, Mike; Williams, Kit
Subject:FW: Statement for Fayetteville AUTOPARK NAI
Good afternoon,
Please read the below message from Mr. David D Nelms regarding tonight’s Agenda Item C.7.
Thank you,
Office of the City Clerk Treasurer
City of Fayetteville, Arkansas
113 West Mountain St, Suite 308
Fayetteville, AR 72701
T 479.575.8323
cityclerk@fayetteville-ar.gov
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube
From: Pennington, Blake <bpennington@fayetteville-ar.gov>
Sent: Tuesday, May 2, 2023 12:02 PM
To: CityClerk <cityclerk@fayetteville-ar.gov>
Cc: Brown, Chris <cbrown@fayetteville-ar.gov>; Masters, Jessica <jmasters@fayetteville-ar.gov>; Mayor
<Mayor@fayetteville-ar.gov>; daviddnelms@gmail.com
Subject: FW: Statement for Fayetteville AUTOPARK NAI
Kara,
I just received the email below from Mr. Nelms regarding the appeal the City Council is considering tonight (Item C.7).
Will you please send this out to the City Council distribution list?
Thank you,
Blake E. Pennington
Senior Assistant City Attorney
City of Fayetteville, Arkansas
Direct: 479.575.8312
bpennington@fayetteville-ar.gov
From: David Nelms <daviddnelms@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, May 2, 2023 11:58 AM
To: Pennington, Blake <bpennington@fayetteville-ar.gov>; Brown, Chris <cbrown@fayetteville-ar.gov>; Masters, Jessica
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<jmasters@fayetteville-ar.gov>; Mayor <Mayor@fayetteville-ar.gov>
Subject: Fwd: Statement for Fayetteville AUTOPARK NAI
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the City of Fayetteville. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize
the sender and know the content is safe.
---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Lee Beshoner <ljb@ftn-assoc.com>
Date: Tue, May 2, 2023 at 6:48 AM
Subject: Statement for Fayetteville AUTOPARK NAI
To: daviddnelms@gmail.com <daviddnelms@gmail.com>
Cc: Lee Beshoner <ljb@ftn-assoc.com>
Here is a statement from our engineers regarding the Planning Commission's approval on the adverse impact variance.
Notice: This is an internal email and can be considered safe.
David,
Per our conversation last week, we will not have our No Adverse Impacts (NAI) hydraulic
analysis completed by the time you have your appeal meeting in front of the Planning
Commission.
With that said, while we are not against the proposed development, we do want to make sure
that you (our Client) are protected. It is concerning that the Planning Commission initially
approved the No Adverse Impact variance (e.g., small rise in hydraulic modeling immediately
upstream of the Highway 112 crossing) without more detailed analyses or further input from the
Engineering section. Further concerns are as follows:
From the variance, it is said that the rise will be removed by the new Highway 112
crossing. However, typically, Arkansas Department of Transportation (ArDOT) does not
design to the 1% (100-yr) annual-chance event. In fact, they often design to the 2% (50-
yr) event, which is below the NAI threshold requirements. Additionally, the grade of
Highway 112 is proposed to be raised (compared to the current elevation). It is not clear
that the full impacts of both the proposed development and the future Highway 112
improvements are reflected in the modeling presented as justification for the variance.
Second, the current plans for the Highway 112 improvement are still subject to change,
as there was just recently a public comment meeting held for this corridor. We understand
that the City and/or ArDOT could alter these plans up to time of construction, which
maybe late 2024 / 2025.
Third, since this area is very flat to start with, an approximate 0.1+ foot rise seems
trivial; however, it could have larger impacts to the AutoPark’s storm sewer infrastructure
(e.g., small increases to the drainage outflow in this area from the AutoPark could lead to
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more stormwater backing up, which may cause a larger impact to the parking areas.
Based on a cursory review of the hydraulic modeling, there were considerable questions
that indicated the analysis should be reviewed in detail by the City’s Engineering
department to determine if the rise of 0.1+ foot reported is reasonable given proposed
conditions and that an impacts to adjacent developments were adequately investigated.
Finally, with the approval by the Commission, this could allow for a precedent to be set for
future developments, which may allow other developments to try and circumvent the NAI
principles adopted by the City Council and enforced by the City’s Engineering Department.
Ultimately, the Planning Commission has the authority to approve or deny whatever
developments and variances they see fit; however, this approach could set a dangerous
precedent moving forward for future development. If you have any further questions, please feel
free to contact me or Kale Farmer, PE, CFM at 479-571-3334.
Thanks,
Lee
*
Lee Beshoner, PE, CFM
Branch Manager / Water Resources Engineer
FTN Associates, Ltd.
p: 479-571-3334 m: 479-970-5656
a: 124 W. Sunbridge Dr., Ste. 3, Fayetteville, AR 72703
w:
www.ftn-assoc.com e: ljb@ftn-assoc.com
* AR, LA, MO, MS, OK, TX
--
David D Nelms
(479) 527-7812
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