As landowner Sanjay Patel looked on, several council members stated opinions on the matter prior to the vote. “It could be rumor, or not, that there could be another RV park going in just on the other side of I-49” said Scott Mallatt as a discussion ensued “And I’m hearing there is a lot of concern what an RV park might look like. Just know, if it’s outside the city limits, it’s out of the city’s control. But if it’s inside city limits, we can control it through code and law enforcement. And we can collect tax money from it. I just think we need to look at this openly.”
Denny Rich was the first to voice concerns regarding negative impacts such as traffic issues, and what will the park look like 3 to 5 years down the road? He also questioned what impacts it might bring being so close to Sunset Park, located just south. The Patel team rebutting, saying there won’t be that much traffic, as most will be coming in to park only or leaving after their stay.
As the conversation wound down, it was asked if any previously addressed code violations on properties in Butler owned by Patel had been rectified. Yes. Have all the recommendations made by the planning commission been addressed and followed? Yes. Is the conditional use permit revocable? Yes. Who will police the RV park for violations? Mr. Patel spoke up and assured everyone there will be a dedicated person on site 24/7 to oversee all aspects, including any code violations as well.
With that, Mayor Henry called for a motion and Becki Randalls responded to deny the conditional use permit for the RV park based on impacts on the street system and a negative impact on property values.
It went to a vote and the final tally came with Rich, Alkire, Liggins, Wainscott and Randalls saying no to the project; the lone yes came from Mallatt. Hall and Behringer were absent.
In other council news it was decided to tear down the old swimming pool building on south High street. Following a short debate of whether or not to spend $8,500 to fix the roof, the discussion centered mostly on whether or not would the building be put to good use- most likely it would be used for storage, and does the city need that?
A motion was made by Mallatt to keep the building and repair the roof, with a second by Marlene Wainscott which failed. He then made a motion to demolish it, which carried. The lone no vote on demolishing came from Wainscott as well.
As the planning commission previously approved updating codes related to allowing rabbits and chickens within city limits on residential property, the measure was passed 4-2, with no votes coming from Liggins and Wainscott. A copy of the ordinance is available at city hall.
Remember the Butler city council meets on the first and third Tuesdays, 7 pm at city hall. The public is encouraged to attend.
