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A&P will proceed with land purchase near lake |
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Thursday, 01 May 2008 |
Benton Advertising and Promotion Commission and the Benton Parks Commission will proceed with the purchase of a 5.59-acre tract of land near Sunset Lake for $205,000.
In a special meeting Tuesday, the commission authorized Jill Jones, the commission’s newly hired executive director, and/or Alan Jessup, A&P chairman, to sign any and all documents related to the purchase of the property.
The acquisition of the site was subject to an appraisal, an asbestos inspection and a lead paint inspection, all of which have been completed, Jessup said. The appraisal and lead paint inspection “came back fine,” he said.
A small amount of asbestos was found in a “popcorn” ceiling of the structure and in floor tiles, he said. It is not considered serious, he noted, but because a public entity is involved, removal of the substance must meet Environmental Protection Agency standards, he said.
Asbestos reportedly is not considered threatening to human health unless it becomes airborne.
The commission initially offered $200,000 to O’Kelley, but he refused that offer and presented a counter offer of $215,000.
It currently is not known whether the house will remain at the site because that decision will be up to the Parks Commission, Jessup said Tuesday.
The property has been listed for sale at $249,900 and O’Kelley’s original offer was for $220,000.
The A&P Commission plans to sell the property to the Parks Commission. The tract is a pivotal park of the Parks Commission’s concept for this area, Parks Commissioner Warren Burleson said in a previous meeting.
“We want to develop this all the way to the river,” he said. “Let’s don’t let this get away from us again. We’ve been talking about it for years ... .”
Burleson said he hopes the city eventually can acquire the mobile home park across from Sunset Lake and develop it as a recreational/tourist site. “We could have a wedding chapel ... multiple uses are possible,” he said
Steve Brown, chairman of the Parks Commission, said in the earlier meeting that it’s important to spend the taxpayers’ money wisely, “but we don’t want to let this slip away.”
The property, which is on Fairfield Road across from Sunset Lake, is in an area where the A&P Commission wants to build an events center. It is near Bernard Holland Park and the Saline County Fairgrounds, which are located along Interstate 30 between the Sevier Street and Haskell exits.
The A&P Commission is in the process of acquiring the old US Fuel Mart near the fairgrounds as part of an overall development concept for the area.
The area also is near the old airport, Watts Field, and the Saline County maintenance shed.
An equine area is among the development plans, the A&P commissioners have said.
The commission also plans to purchase the old US Fuel Mart from Troutman Oil Co. pending completion of an environmental study. the abandoned business is at 15433 Interstate 30.
The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality had been concerned that additional underground fuel tanks could have been located at the site in addition to the ones that were known to exist.
That area has been excavated and it has been determined that there are no additional tanks at the site, Commissioner David Prater said in the earlier meeting.
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