HomeMy WebLinkAbout1999-05-28 MINUTES OF COUNCIL
SPECIAL MEETING
MAY 28, 1999
The Batesville City Council met in special session on May 28, at 9:30 A.M. at the
Municipal Building. Mayor Biard presided over the meeting. Upon roll call, all the
council answered present except Councilmember Gaither. Also present were the City
Clerk and the City Attorney.
Councilmember Ford moved to approve the prepared agenda. Councilmember
Insell seconded. All voted for
SPECIAL ADDRESS BY THE MAYOR
Mayor Biard read the following prepared statement. "Batesville is known as the
City of Hospitality, and not the City of Hostilities. It has never been my wish to match
neighbor against neighbor or even perhaps churches against churches. My first duty
and love is the City of Batesville but I also have a concern for all of Independence
County. In recent days, much has been said about annexation. Regrettably, some
statements have been made on both sides of the issue which did not relate directly to
the issue at hand.
Let me make it clear that I am not giving up on the progress of this community as
we will study new ways to have a more united position. I well know that people will
never agree totally on most controversial issues.
My personal thanks to all those who have been serving on the task force to bring
the annexation proposal to the table. I cannot express my gratitude enough for their
time. I hope I can count on their continued support as we continue to search for the
right direction.
While some Arkansas Cities are experiencing positive change and sustainable
growth, other Cities are experiencing decline and decay.
One of the jobs of City Government is to discuss what constitutes positive growth
and how to make it happen. Zoning, building and fire codes, traffic, parking, signage
standards, market strategies, financial formulas, and economic development strategies
etc. tend to encourage or to prevent the right things from happening depending on how
they are handled.
A city must recognize the critical economic role of industry and know how to
nourish it and provide jobs for the citizens or join the ranks of the cities in decline and
wonder why retail and manufacturing left, how to bring them back, and why others do
not come.
A city provides the necessary infrastructure to support growth and development
(i.e. water and management for the Pfeiffer Water System is furnished by the City of
Batesville) and this is a major factor considered by industry.
What is done in the present points to what the future may hold. The annexation
proposal was the result of the hard work of a dedicated committee. They talked to
many; many people over a 4-year span.
Annexation proposal opponents were well organized and sought numerous
guarantees, many of which are not available to the present residents of the city.
Residents favoring annexation were not organized and none spoke in favor of the
proposal at the May 25 meeting.
Annexation proceedings are highly technical legal proceedings. Should the
voters approve annexation proposal on October 12, 1999 there would still be a shadow
on the outcome for an extended period of time, a time when the efforts of the city should
be focused on other concerns.
There are still ways for places like Spring Valley and others to come into the city
and have sewer services. My door is open for dialog in the direction."
ORDINANCE REPEALING ORDINANCE #99-5-1
The Mayor read an ordinance in full that would repeal ordinance #99-5-1 for the
purpose of canceling a special election on annexation. Councilmember Bone moved to
suspend the rules and place the ordinance on the second reading. Councilmember
Insell seconded and the roll call count was 7 for and 0 against. The Mayor read the
ordinance for the second reading. The Mayor opened the floor for any council
comments. Councilmember Bone said no one wants to do something and then undo it.
She said many concerns have been voiced of the proposal and she wants people to
know the council was trying to operate for the good of the whole. Sometimes you have
to take a step back and pursue other options. Councilmember Insell read the following
prepared statement. "When this ordinance was presented to the city council I believed
it to be a win, win situation for our City and our County. It would provide the needed
population that Batesville needed to raise to the next level of growth as well as
increasing land value and providing much needed sewer to many in the proposed
annexed area. This ordinance, I believe, was offered with good intentions for everyone
involved.
When the public meetings began, the atmosphere of the meetings degenerated
into ill will, name calling, malice, rumors, and anger on both sides. This was almost
presented by the opposition for annexation as a righteous cause. I don't believe in
God's economy that whether a City annexes or doesn't annex is of much concern to
Him. However, how people treat one another is of great concern to Him. He said,
"Love they neighbor as thyself'. There was very little Christian virtue shown in these
meetings much less human respect from either side. It's ok to disagree but it's not ok to
be disagreeable. I hope that in the coming days and weeks that we all can examine our
own hearts and ask God to forgive us of our shortcomings in this situation. I hope that
we also can grant forgiveness to all of those who we feel have wronged us in any way.
This has gone from a win, win situation to a lose, lose. We are all the losers. I
hope 10 years from now that we don't look back on these events and regret that we
couldn't work together".
Councilmember Insell moved to further suspend the rules and place the
ordinance on the third reading. Councilmember Carpenter seconded and the roll call
count was 7 for and 0 against. The Mayor read the ordinance for the final reading.
Councilmember Bone moved to adopt the ordinance and Councilmember Carpenter
seconded. The roll call count was 7 for and 0 against. The ordinance was given #99-5-
2.
There being no further business, Councilmember Mitchum moved that the
meeting be adjourned. Councilmember Carpenter seconded and all voted for.
JOE M. BIARD, MAYOR
DENISE M. JOHNSTON, CITY CLERK