The City of Benton’s Commissions Committee will meet on Monday, February 10, 2025. They are scheduled to discuss the purchase of a base station for utilities, adjusting electric rates, conditional use for a duplex, changing residential property to commercial, agricultural property to residential, servicing a new annexed property.
This is one of several meetings will set to begin at 5:00 p.m., including Personnel, Health & Safety, Finance, and finally the Commissions Committee. Read the full agenda below:
MEETING AGENDA 02/10/25
City of Benton Commissions Committee
Meeting Agenda
February 10, 2025
Following Animal Services Committee
Council Chambers
Committee Members:
Ann Spencer-Cole, Chair
Evelyn Reed, Vice Chair
Frank Baptist
Jeff Morrow
Steve Brown
Judd Hart
Steve Lee
Shane Knight
Bill Donnor
Jeff Hamm
Staff Liaison: Toby Hirscheider
1. Establish a Quorum/Call to Order
2. Recognition of Attendees
3. Approval of Minutes of January 2025
4. Information from PUC – Council Member Hart
ORDINANCE NO.__ OF 2025 –
AN ORDINANCE WAIVING COMPETITIVE BIDDING AND AUTHORIZING BENTON UTILITIES TO PURCHASE AN M4008 BASE STATION WITH INSTALLATION & DECOMMISSION OF THE OLD BASE STATION; AND, FOR OTHER PURPOSES
ORDINANCE NO.__ OF 2025 –
AN ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING ELECTRICAL RATES FOR CUSTOMERS OF THE CITY OF BENTON, ARKANSAS; REPEALING ELECTRICAL RATE STRUCTURES ADOPTED BY THE CITY IN ORDINANCE NO. 59 OF 2022; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
5. Information from A&P – Council Member Brown/Baptist
6. Information from P&Z – Council Member Spencer – Cole/Reed
ORDINANCE NO.__ OF 2025 –
AN ORDINANCE PROVIDING CONDITIONAL USE FOR A DUPLEX LOCATED AT MULTIPLE [12] PARCELS ALONG S. MAIN STREET; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
ORDINANCE NO.__ OF 2025 –
AN ORDINANCE REZONING 219 KENWOOD ROAD IN THE CITY OF BENTON, SALINE COUNTY, ARKANSAS, FROM R2 SINGLE FAMILY DISTRICT DETACHED HOUSING TO C1 NEIGHBORHOOD COMMERCIAL AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
ORDINANCE NO__ . OF 2025 –
AN ORDINANCE REZONING 1205 AND 1207 HIGHWAY 35 IN THE CITY OF BENTON, SALINE COUNTY, ARKANSAS, FROM AG AGRICULTURAL TO R5 MULTI FAMILY DISTRICT AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
ORDINANCE NO.__ OF 2025 –
AN ORDINANCE ACCEPTING THE ANNEXATION OF CERTAIN TERRITORY TO THE CITY OF BENTON, ARKANSAS; APPROVING THE SCHEDULE OF SERVICES TO BE EXTENDED TO SAID AREA; ASSIGNING SUCH TO A WARD; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
7. Other
8. Adjournment
PREVIOUS MEETING’S MINUTES 01/13/25
City of Benton
January 13, 2025
Commissions Committee Meeting Minutes
Committee Members:
Ann Spencer-Cole, Chair – Present
Evelyn Reed, Vice Chair – Present
Frank Baptist – Present
Steve Brown – Present
Bill Donnor – Present
Jeff Morrow – Present
Judd Hart – Present
Shane Knight – Present
Steve Lee – Present
Jeff Hamm – Present
Staff Liaison: Toby Hirscheider – Present
Mayor: Tom Farmer – Present
Council Member Spencer-Cole – OK we’re calling our commission’s committee meeting to order.
Roll was taken
Council Member Spencer-Cole-Thank you. I would like to make a motion for the approval of December 2024 minutes. Second, all in favor. Any opposed? Motion carries for our approval or our December 2024 minutes. Next on our agenda is information from our PUC Council Member Hart.
Council Member Hart – We have an ordinance waving competitive bidding ratifying the purchase of a 2024 Caterpillar skid steer, Todd do you want to talk about?
Todd Pederson – This has not been approved by our PUC yet but because this meeting is happening before our meeting. I wanted to get it on y’all’s agenda if they choose to not accept and send it forward to y’all, it will be pulled. I just wanted to get this in front of y’all so if you want me to talk about why we’re waving competitive bidding, I will. Y’all’s meeting is the 27th,
Council Member Spencer-Cole – Yes, correct thank you Mr. Pederson. Next is information from our A&P, Mr. Brown.
Council member Brown – Nothing at this time.
Council Member Spencer-Cole – Thank you. Next is the information from our P&Z. There is an Ordinance that’s rezoning 712 and 716 N Main St. in the city of Benton Saline County Arkansas from the R2 single-family district detached housing to C1 neighborhood commercial and for other purposes. Any questions from the Council?
Council Member Hart – Where is that and do we know what they want to build?
Council Member Spencer – Cole – This is over by Carpenter Street, and I believe this is by Simmons Eye Clinic, where they can build on. Next on our agenda is an Ordinance Rezoning parcel #805101000 parcel #80510096000 and parcel #80510089000 in the City of Benton, Saline County, Arkansas, from R2 Single Family District detached housing to C3 Service Commercial and for other purposes. Any questions from the Council?
Council Member Hart – The last page says it’s off Benton Parkway, do you know what they want to put there? Are they going to sell it?
John Parton – Inaudible
Council Member Morrow – Did the P&Z approve Dixie Street to be renamed to Fuller Street?
Council Member Spencer-Cole – No, that is still under discussion right now. It was never voted on.
Mayor Farmer – I’d like just to say that even though the city offices were closed Friday for snow that Mandy and her crew worked the entire time to get us the financials and get everything done for us so I just want to say thank you because while others were building snowman or ride sleds they were inside working to get us everything that we need for tonight’s meeting so thank you to her and her staff
I want to thank John I probably got more positive comments this time than ever before for the street department and the hard work they did from Wednesday when they pretreated the streets with that big juice stuff and then Thursday they were plowing Friday they were plowing but everyone said that they’ve never seen the streets have been look better during a snowstorm like we just got and I think the official record was 10 inches that we got in the city of Benton thank them
I want to thank the county because that we’ve got a lot of compliments from roads not the county where the county was doing the same thing the city was so I just took the thanks and went on about it but you know we’re all working together for one thing and I appreciate it matter of fact the county was up there John around the courthouse Saturday hauling off snow because we had the big advancements where they stacked it up and so they were they were hauling off our snow and I appreciate that them doing that so everyone worked diligently while some were all planned so I thank our staff for everything they’ve done
parks our dragon parks that we had a big gymnastics meet scheduled for Saturday but the roads didn’t right here to come into town and doing that so rescheduled for Sunday and they had their gymnastics meet on Sunday even though were scheduled for Saturday so instead of canceling it we worked to get that in at the same time that was going on at the boys and Girls Club was a big baseball clinic put on by the UL baseball coaching staff
while all that was going on we had the warming center where all the churches in the community come together and housed and the unhoused during a cold night so our community is working together to make things better for everyone
so I think he goes out to all of our staff Mandy John and everyone else and Scotty even volunteered to come up there and sit if we couldn’t find an officer but everything was covered so y’all look so between last winter and this winter thank you we added two years snowplows on pickup trucks on heavy duty pickup trucks we had five going 4 spreaders it was something that shortly short now the next day yeah by 1030 the snowfall they brought it hey let me
let me say this on Monday of last week John and I spoke he went to his 21 people and he said look winter storms coming in I need you to change your day off instead of being off on Friday or why don’t you take Tuesday or Wednesday off so that we can all work together on Friday and they all agreed to it so and they didn’t have to but they did you know so John John’s leadership made sure that everything was taken care of leadership.
Council Member Spencer-Cole – If there is no further discussion, this meeting is adjourned.
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