HOUSING AND NEIGHBORHOOD PRESERVATION

One of the main goals of Barling's Land Use Plan is to provide an adequate supply of housing in a variety of housing types which meet diverse housing needs without negatively affecting the character of the residential areas. The plan addresses expanding the current housing supply, providing housing for all income levels, and preserving existing neighborhoods. One of the greatest concerns of Barling residents is that the City not allow there to become an "old" Barling and a "new" Barling.

The study conducted by RKG Associates analyzed the local residential market and examined housing development trends since 1990, as well as factors such as average housing values, rate of new development, sales activity and pricing, and geographic patterns of growth. The cost of residential land varies due to a number of factors such as location, size of lot, type of abutting land uses, availability of municipal utilities (water and sanitary sewer), and other amenity factors.

A review of single family land sales shows that price varies greatly throughout the regional market. Rural home site lots under one acre in size, with all municipal utilities, converted into a "per acre" price range of $45,000 to $85,000 per acre in Fort Smith. The difference between individual sites, however, can vary significantly. Rural home sites are typically scattered within a community and are greatly influenced by location.

Small lots (less than one acre) located in residential subdivisions range from $65,000 to $100,000 per acre in Fort Smith, and small lots in premium subdivisions can sell for between $130,000 to $200,000 per acre. The typical residential lot in a subdivision, is 0.25 and .050 acres, but smaller house lots of 6,500 to 7,000 square feet are being sold in surrounding areas, such as Barling, Van Buren and Greenwood, in order to keep cost low for new home buyers.

It is estimated that housing development in the region, between 1990 and 1997, required about 200 to 300 acres of land per year. This estimate does not include land for access roads, utility right-of ways, common areas or other associated land uses. Over a thousand acres of Fort Chaffee land is currently planned for residential use. This would appear to make Barling a preferred site for future residential development in the Fort Smith MSA.

The rate at which homes sell in the local market is a very important factor relative to future demand for land in Barling and the area at the Fort Chaffee site. The level of sales activity is a direct indicator of demand, while the price and size of housing units indicate what type of housing people desire. According to some local brokers and developers, the majority of housing for sale in the Fort Smith market is priced and built for the high end of the market. Therefore, cost sensitive buyers are forced to look for affordable housing in neighboring locations.

Type of Housing

Fort Chaffee also has the potential to tap into the high end of the regional housing market, because of the site's attractive natural setting and scenic views. The demand for larger, more expensive housing has been fueled in recent years by the relocation of Beverly Enterprises to Fort Smith in 1993. The company's relocation of nearly 700 employees, with average incomes of $40,000 per year, was likely responsible for a portion of this increased demand. In addition, the region's healthcare industry has experienced steady growth, and therefore has produced a number of high paying jobs, including physicians and other medical specialists. Taking all of this into consideration, it would be beneficial for Barling to provide higher income level housing at the Fort Chaffee site.

The current type of housing stock in the City of Barling is low to moderate income housing. If new, low to moderate income housing is built in the Fort Chaffee area, there may very well be a migration of people to the "new" residential area, leaving the "old" area vacant or full of rental property. The reality of such an action is the feared establishment of a "new" and "old" Barling. Being realistic who would want to buy a $50,000, 30 year old house, when they could buy a $50,000, 1 year old house. Furthermore, if Barling does not include a sufficient supply of higher priced homes, it may fail to retain residents with higher incomes. The City may even find itself at an economic disadvantage as business and industry that depend on highly skilled personnel locate in other communities where those persons reside. By building higher level income housing, the City can not only retain residents with higher incomes, it can attract new residents.

In reference to the existing housing stock, the idea is people who can afford only low to moderate income housing would buy a house in the existing neighborhoods in Barling. Then, as their income increases and they can afford a more expensive house, they would buy a house in the higher income level. The housing in the City of Barling would serve as a stepping stone, residents' moving from low to moderate income housing to higher income level housing. This would allow the City to keep its residents for many years. Furthermore, one of the City of Barling's policies is to promote more owner occupied housing. This can be accomplished by promoting the existing housing stock in Barling.

Description of Future Residential Land

The amount of land set aside as residential in the Preferred Land Reuse Plan is 1,381 acres. The land is broken into three categories: higher value, moderate value and lesser value residential. High value residential land includes those proposed residential areas in prime locations such as those at higher elevations, near Well's Lake, the western ridge, the golf course, as well as land that will be sold to developers in bulk sale lots of 25 or more acres. Roughly 355 acres of land in three parcels are contained in this category. The average annual absorption for this category is estimated at between 14 and 20 acres per year, beginning in year 4 with a 20 to 25 year absorption period. The average selling price of Higher Value Residential land, without infrastructure, is estimated at $6,000 per acre. A total of 511 new higher value units averaging $120,000 (in 1998 dollars) are projected to be constructed upon project built-out. Development densities of 1.6 units per acre are projected for this land use.

Moderate Value Residential land includes those proposed residential areas in secondary locations, perhaps located along major arterial roads or near commercial/industrial land uses. Land will be sold to developers in bulk sale lots of 25 or more acres. This category is comprised of 8 parcels containing 700 acres. Average annual absorption is projected to range from 18 to 32 acres per year over a 35 to 40 year period beginning in year 4. The average selling price of Moderate Value Residential land, without infrastructure, is estimated at $7,500 per acre. A total of 1,890 new moderate value units averaging $100,000 (in 1998 dollars) are projected to be constructed upon project built-out. Development of densities of 3 units per acre are projected for this land use.

Lesser Value Residential land includes those proposed residential areas in secondary locations, perhaps located along major arterial roads or near commercial/industrial land uses. Land will be sold to developers in bulk sale lots of 25 or more acres. The amount of land in this category equals approximately 326 acres in 4 parcels. Average annual absorption is projected to range from 9 to 15 acres per year over a 30-35 year period. The average selling price of Lesser Value Residential land, without infrastructure, is estimated at $10,000 per acre. A total of 1,027 new lesser value units averaging $80,000 (in 1998 dollars) are projected to be constructed upon project built-out. Development densities of 3.5 units per acre are projected for this land use.

According to a housing market study conducted by J&K Enterprises, on behalf of the Hill's Group proposal for the redevelopment of Fort Chaffee, the demand for new housing units over the next ten years is projected at 9,463 single family housing units. Based on existing regional distribution of annual building permits and regional growth projections, it is projected that 6,054 units would be constructed in Sebastian County alone, resulting in an annual demand of 605 new units. It is also projected that approximately 2,594 units, or 43 percent of all new housing units constructed over the next ten years, will be constructed for under $100,000 which is considered affordable for the average household.

A reasonable method for measuring historical demand for housing is to track the number of building permits issued. In order to complete this task, building permit data was collected for all major communities, starting in 1993, the first year that data was available, to the present. Since 1993, the Cities of Fort Smith, Van Buren, and Greenwood have issued approximately 495 single family building permits per year. The smaller communities in Crawford and Sebastian Counties have averaged approximately 79 single family building permits per year during the 1991-1996 period, resulting in a combined total of approximately 574 new housing starts per year. Assigning a rough estimate of one-quarter acre land for each small to moderate-sized home of under 2,000 square feet, and one-half acre for homes over 2,000 square feet or located in rural settings (i.e., Greenwood, Alma, Barling, etc.) It is estimated that approximately 230 acres of land are consumed each year for residential development in the regional housing market. These land absorption estimates only reflect the land consumed by housing lots and does not account for access roads, utility right-of-ways, common areas, or other associated land use.

PRESERVING EXISTING NEIGHBORHOODS

The quality of residential environments is of great concern. One of the most basic considerations for any community is to maintain and improve the livability of its existing neighborhoods.

This task becomes more complex if the community is attempting to meet housing needs by using vacant and underutilized parcels within existing neighborhoods. Other factors which add to the task include traffic congestion, the age and condition of the existing housing stock, and the partially developed nature of certain neighborhoods where future development may well change their overall character. In addition, the relatively high proportion of renter households may result in a lack of maintenance in certain neighborhoods.

New infill development must be sensitive to the needs and concerns of existing residents and adverse impacts must be mitigated to the extent feasible. Even neighborhoods where no additional development appears likely may still need attention to rehabilitate housing, correct traffic problems, provide parks, or meet other needs.

Another important goal in the preservation of existing neighborhoods, is the promotion of owner occupied housing. There is a general perception that owner occupants are more concerned about their community and their neighborhood and that they are more conscientious about maintenance than landlords or tenants. The desirability of neighborhoods as places to live is often influenced by the extent of owner occupancy; concentrations of multi-family rental housing within neighborhoods may discourage potential resident owners from buying adjoining homes. Therefore, it is a policy of the City of Barling to assist in the promotion of owner occupied housing by informing residents of the existence of government funding that aids people in owning their own home. By increasing the number of owner occupied housing, Barling residents will possess an even greater pride in their city and neighborhood.

Having a neighborhood identity is important to many people's satisfaction with their city. Neighborhoods can be given greater identity by special treatment of their boundaries and entrances which can indicate privacy and low intensity of use (most residential areas) or public and high intensity of use (downtown and other high density areas).

The design of improvements for street zones, and to some extent for private properties as well, should emphasize the distinctive nature of districts and neighborhoods. Street landscaping, in particular, can be selected and designed according to a special theme for each area, providing a sense of neighborhood identity in addition to its other amenities. Planting for public open spaces and on private properties can also take account of established themes. Distinctiveness can also be imparted by preservation and highlighting of architectural features common to the area, and use of special materials and colors in buildings. Infill development should incorporate some of the more attractive elements of the area. Neighborhood planning would seek to identify aspects of local character to be retained.

There are many other issues such as traffic congestion, special parking problems, buffering land uses, and lack of adequate support facilities (parks, shopping areas, etc.) which vary throughout the city in terms of cause, extent and possible solutions, and are most appropriately addressed at the neighborhood level with local citizen participation. Of course, the City must still take action on issues such as regional circulation deficiencies (to help mitigate local traffic problems) and city-wide development standards (to address parking and project design problems) in order to effectively assist in the preservation of existing neighborhoods. Implementation of a neighborhood planning program will allow for local identification of problems and solutions by those people most affected.

DESCRIPTION OF EXISTING DEVELOPMENT

The following is a chronological list of the subdivisions in the City of Barling.

The first subdivision to be established in the City of Barling was the Maddux subdivision in 1887. The present day Highway 22 was not known as such but was called Little Rock Road. The subdivision is south of Highway 22 near Third, Fourth, and Fifth Street.

El Mac East subdivision is located just south of Highway 22 off of North Twenty-Second.

The Hillview Addition was established in April of 1971. It is located off of Ninth Street near K and M Street.

Coleman Village is located just south of Highway 22 near B, C, D, and E Street. The subdivision was established in October 1971.

Strozier Village was established in May of 1975. The subdivision is located off of Strozier Lane near North Thirteenth and Strozier Court.

Van Earl Estates was established in June of 1978. The subdivision is located off of North N near North Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Street.

Sundance Village is located near N Street and M Circle. The subdivision was established in January of 1982.

Heatheridge Estates is located off of North Ninth Street near P Street and Heather Way. It was established in July of 1986.

The Pine Meadows Subdivision was established in March of 1986. It is located of off North Twenty-second near Moody Road, Meadow Lane and Pine Lane.

The Meadow Brook Subdivision was established in June of 1988. It is located of off North Ninth, between H and K Street.

Pine Woods is the most recent subdivision to be established in Barling. It is located of off South Twenty-second and L Street. It was established in April of 1996.

POLICIES AND STRATEGIES