Searcy Annexation Plan

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Annexation plan will go to Council, voters: Boundary committee finalizes recommendation    MAP

By Tim Bousquet Jun 11, 2004

The Daily Citizen

An ad-hoc group formed to consider expanding the City of Searcy's boundaries voted Wednesday to annex broad expanses of land to the north, west and south of the city. The recommendation, the group's final, will be considered by the City Council in July and will be placed before the voters in November.

On May 19, the group dropped property west of Honey Hill Road from its proposal after property owners Wayne Stroup and Pat Garrett objected. But that area was put back into the proposal Wednesday.

Residents south of Booth Road had likewise objected, but the final proposal stretches the area to be annexed to 1,320 feet south of the road, twice the distance considered at the previous meeting.

And while the group discussed the minute details of shifting the city's external boundary line to one side or another of streets and around small properties, it voted without comment on the most significant - and most costly - change: a giant hole in the proposed city map that corresponds exactly with the Searcy Country Club.

The committee voted on May 19 to include both the country club and the Elk's Lodge in the proposal it would submit to the City Council. No public meeting was held in the interim, but on Wednesday the group was presented with, and voted to approve, a map that excluded both establishments from the proposal.

No explanation was given for the change.

"I can't recall who suggested that we omit that," said Steve Jordan, chair of the group. "But it was felt that it just complicated matters."

"People in Searcy are pretty conservative," said Doug Faith, a member of both the City Council and the annexation group. "And there are probably some people who would think that once the city takes in a liquor license, it's a slippery slope. Maybe a restaurant will apply for a private club permit. And that's enough to give them a reason to vote against this. So why give people a reason to vote against it?"

But omitting the private clubs from the annexation proposal also omits the potential for two large sales tax generators to add to city coffers, an issue that wasn't discussed at the meeting.

At the end of the meeting, Mayor Belinda LaForce suggested that the group hold a public hearing to explain its proposal, and to hear any objections before the matter is considered by the City Council. No date has been set for the hearing.

If approved by the Council without changes, and if approved by the voters, the new city boundaries will be as follows:

  • Eastern boundary. Presently, the City of Searcy's jurisdiction ends on the west side of East Line Road, and the City of Kensett's jurisdiction begins on the east side of the road. Searcy will take in the roadway, giving the police department authority to patrol the road. The boundary line will extend southwesterly past the terminus of the road, bringing into the city a handful of businesses around Exit 44 of Highway 167.

  • Southern boundary. A large tract of industrial land west of the airport will be brought into the city. Otherwise, the southern boundary of the city will be a line 1,320 feet south of Booth Road, with the exception of a jag to include all of the Country Lane Estates subdivision.

  • Western boundary. Valley Road will be the western boundary of the city. The boundary line will extend southerly past Valley Road's junction with Highway 36, including both Stroup's and Garrett's property.

  • Northern boundary. The entire Hillcrest subdivision will be brought into the city, but the boundary line will drop back down to the north side of Collins Road, then easterly to the existing city boundary, which follows an extension of Ella Road northward to an extension of Bypass Road.

  • Northeastern boundary. The only other significant change in boundaries will be a parcel of undeveloped land along the Little Red River east of Highway 167.