FARMINGTON -- Farmington City Council last week voted 7-1 to rezone 34 acres between Highway 170 and the Valley View golf course from agricultural to R-1, single-family residential.
Council member Diane Bryant voted against the rezoning request, which was unanimously recommended by the Farmington Planning Commission at its September meeting. An R-1 zoning district requires a lot size with a minimum of 10,000 square feet.
A couple of people at the meeting said they were concerned how a residential development on the land would affect drainage in the area.
Jim Duffy of Frisco Drive in Valley View subdivision said the rezoning request was a "red flag" to him because of flooding from that property.
The land drains to the south, Duffy said, and already some residents are seeing their yards flood during heavy rainfalls.
"If this does not drain well, it will flood even more," Duffy said.
Referring to flooding in other parts of the city, Duffy added, "I don't think the city needs another Meadowsweet or another Peachtree."
Other concerns expressed at the meeting about the rezoning were whether the development would affect property values in the area and whether the rezoning would set a precedent for other pasture land nearby.
Dave Jorgensen with Jorgensen & Associates presented the rezoning request on behalf of property owner Richard Grubbs Jr. and developer Michael Brand. Jorgensen said the developer is planning to build 75-78 homes on the property.
Jorgensen told the City Council that the property does drain to the southwest and appropriate drainage will have to be designed for any development.
Mayor Ernie Penn also assured Duffy that the developer will have to go through the city's process to submit plans for a residential development and the city's engineer will have to review and approve all drainage plans.
Jorgensen said the development would not be connected to any other subdivisions in the Valley View area. He did not think a plan would be submitted until the end of the year.
In other business, the Council approved an ordinance to waive the requirement of competitive bidding for a new computer server and then turned around and voted to purchase a Dell Equal Logic Server and Networking System Management Equipment (two servers and software) for $65,213. Labor costs for the project will be $10,000.
City Business Manager Melissa McCarville said the city had hoped to make it through 2018 on its current server, planning to purchase a new one in 2019. However, the server went out a few weeks ago and it's been patched enough just to get by until a new one is installed in about three weeks, McCarville said.
The new system, which has a five-year warranty, will provide more space, will be faster and be more efficient, according to police Desk Sgt. Billie Virgin, who also serves as the city's technical manager. It will also enable the city to become completely virtual in 2019, allowing employees to work off the server, instead of their personal computers.
As part of the purchase, the city will have 24-hour technical service from Dell, hardware support and next business day service.
The Council also appointed Chad Ball to Farmington Planning Commission. Ball is replacing Matt Hutcherson who recently resigned because he is moving out of the city. Ball works for the city of Fayetteville as an investigator for the city prosecuting attorney.
General News on 10/17/2018