MINUTES OF MEETING OF THE

GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE

OUACHITA ROOM, PONCE DE LEON CENTER

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 5,2014, 8:00 A.M.

Highlights of the meeting are summarized below.

  • Keith Keck reported that the proposed two-tier assessment increase failed for lack of a quorum
  • Chair Jerry Yeric presented a detailed analysis of voting on the assessment increase proposal, including an evaluation of trends in pro-and-con letters to the editor of the Village Voice..
  • Jim Harlow reported on discussions with Governor-elect Hutchinson’s transition team on retirement/relocation. He also gave a presentation of the new website for the Saline County Economic Development Commission.
  • Dick Breckon reported on meetings of the Tri-County MPO. The 5/7 to MLK Bypass remains the top priority of the 2016-2019 period.
  • Paul Day reported on the Benton Chamber of Commerce, and indicated several priorities for the 2015 State Legislative session, and suggested that retirement/relocation be included in this listing.
  • Cindy Calhoun reported on goings-on in Hot Springs. A Community Water Committee was appointed to “find solutions to the water issues facing the city and county”. Please refer to her detained report for more information.
  • Lu Otto reported that three Village demographic reports are in preparation for publication in the Village Voice.
  • George Bollier reported that Lakes DeSoto and Pineda are being drawn down to allow for silt removal A request for qualifications was sent to firms capable of performing an infiltration/inflow study in the Western end of the Village.
  • John Lands reported on enrollment at Fountain Lake and Jessieville schools. Please refer to his report for detailed statistics.

Reminder and Calendar: Next meeting January 9, 2015.Ouchita Rppm, 8:00 a.m.

Legislative Luncheon, February 23, 2015, Capitol Café.

Committee Members

Chair Jerry Yeric, Vice Chair Gerald Allen, Cindy Calhoun, Michael Dollar, Jim Harlow, Curt Malone, Lu Otto, Paul Pool, Dick Schmidt

Ex Officio Members

George Bollier, Water

Dick Breckon, Tri Lakes

Paul Day, Benton and Saline County Liaison

John Land, Schools

Bob Shoemaker, Local and State Officials

Justices of the Peace

Garland County, J.P. Larry Griffin (absent)

Saline County, J.P. James Zahnd

POA Board Members

Keith Keck, Committee Liaison

Frank Leeming

Guest

Lamont Cornwell. Saline County Economic Development

Press

Lewis Delavan, Village Voice

Call to OrderChair Jerry Yeric called the meeting to order at 8:00 a.m.

AgendaThe agenda was approves as submitted

MinutesMinutes of the November 7, 2014 meeting were approves upon motion by Dick Breckon, second by Paul Pool and unanimous vote.

ReportsKeith Keck reported on the November 5, 2014 POA Work Session as follows:

  • POA revenues are down, and unexpended expenses were incurred, yet the proposed two-tier assessment increase failed for lack of a quorum.
  • Discussion on alternative approaches for rollover of the golf cart fleet was carried out.
  • The POA Board is to vote on whether to hold a second vote on the two-tier assessment increase at its regular meeting on December 17, 2014/

Chairman’s Report—Jerry Yeric

Examining the Assessment Vote

Elections are not isolated events. Each election must be placed in context for there are multiple factors that influence the results. The assessment election is no different. A topic that generated a great deal of discussion among residents of HSV was the coverage of the proposed assessment in the Village Voice---specifically the letters to the editor. This is not an insignificant concern, for the media may not tell us what to think, but they tell us what to think about—they set the agenda. Several metrics can be used to gain an understanding of the themes that underride the community’s public discourse. One measure is the volume, or space that has been devoted to letters on the issue. Using this measure we find that during the period from July 29 through November 18, there was a total of 1,925.5 column inches in the paper’s letters to the editor. This is equivalent to 15.11 full pages. Of this space 1,452.75 column inches were letters that opposed the assessment proposal or 11.39 full pages compared to 474.75 column inches of letters in support or 3.72 pages. Measuring column inches is a one gauge of activity on an issue. Another measure is the total number of letters. There were 199 letters to the editor on this issue published in the Village Voiceduring this period. Of those 140 were against the proposal and 59 in support. This equates to 70.35 percent of the letters in opposition and 29.64 percent in support. When one examines the letters by author an interesting pattern emerges. Among the 140 letters opposing the assessment, 5 people accounted for 28 percent of the letters by writing five or more. Finally, we see in the graph the distribution of letters over time. It is clear that those who opposed the assessment proposal, or at least a few of those, were highly active in expressing their discontent and were responsible for establishing the agenda on this issue.

The agenda set by the letters was a negative one. The question is did this contribute to the defeat of the proposal? The initial reaction might be that it did but by looking at other factors this was most likely not the case.

Past Voting Behavior

An examination of past voting in HSV provides greater light on the outcome. While a majority of both residents and non-residents supported the assessment proposal, it failed for a lack of a quorum. There are many factors that contributed to this outcome. Among those are: the general national political malaise, the timing of the election, and the history of voting trends in Village elections. Recent POA board elections have seen two consistent trends. The first is the majority of people do not vote. As the graph indicates, the percent of those who return their ballots is under 40 percent. The assessment vote was 5.32 percent higher than the 2014 board election, and 4 percent above the 2011 election.

If one where to look at how these votes were cast, residents compared to non-residents, the pattern has changed since 2010 where the majority of votes in elections were cast by non-resident property owners. Since then residents have cast the majority of votes. This was the case in the assessment vote as well, but the significant factor was the fall-off of non-resident voting. The 12 percent drop-off of non-resident votes was the reason that the vote failed. The magnitude of this decrease suggests that external factors were at play in this election as was the case in the national elections where turnout was the lowest since 1942. However, among those who did cast a vote, a majority of both residents and non-residents supported the proposed assessment.

Retirement/Relocation—Jim Harlow

  • November 14, Jim Harlow met with Steve Lux (Governor-elect Hutchinson's Transition Team ) and presented the Retiree-RelocatorPowerpoint presentation. Mr. Lux , who will be a Hutchinson appointee to theEcono. Dev. Comm., was very interested in the possibilities for retiree relocation having a more significant part of the new administration's focus on economic development/tourism for the State. Mr. Lux indicated he would be meeting with the Governor's Transition Team to introduce RR as a potential focus and asked that we be available for a presentation to the transition team if needed. If adopted,legislation could be developed/introduced that will target Retiree Relo. as a legislative priority.
  • Presently, discussions are underway with Lt. Gov.-elect Tim Griffin's office to present the RR presentation to Mr. Griffin This will hopefully lead him to consider becoming a supporter/champion of this initiative within the Executive Office of the Governor. An early January presentation is tentatively scheduled.

  • SALINE COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMM. REPORT (SCEDC)
    The new website for the SCEDC has been developed and is ready for launch. The website is the product of a collaboration between the SCEDC and Marketing Alliance, Inc. who developed the website for the county. The website will be maintained by the SCEDC with content update support from "The AD Team" located in Benton. The website focuses on information necessary for "site evaluators" to properly evaluate the county for potential industry relocations to Saline County. The website prominently displays the recreational and quality of life assets of Hot Springs Village as a partner with SCEDC in attracting corporate clients and their families to Saline County.

Tri-Lakes Metro—Dick Breckon

  • The Tri-Lakes MPO (Garland and Hot Springs counties) Policy Board met on 13 November 2014. The following subjects of interest to HSV were discussed:
  • The 5/7 to MLK Bypass remains the number one priority for the 2016-2019 STIP. In response to questions, Judge Davis reported that a meeting of the involved Garland County/Hot Springs organizations will be held soon to determine local offsets to be proposed to the State Highway Department. We have heard this before. Separate investigation indicates that Jim Fram, Hot Springs Chamber head, is now taking the lead, so this time something may finally happen.
  • The $10M improvement to SH 5 between the 5/7 intersection and Gulpha Gorge will start in 2016.
  • The widening of US 70 between I 30 and Hot Springs will be completed in two segments: (1) I-30 to SH 128 (Saline County) 2016-2018 and (2) SH 128 to Hot Springs (Garland County) 2018-2020. Left turn safety concerns at the 128/70 intersection because of the widening to four lanes were discussed. The intersection is in Garland County. The State Highway Department Representative said that the plan included retaining the left turn lane on US 70 going east. This subject should be addressed by the MPO Technical Committee.

Benton Chamber—Paul Day

  • I met with Steve Lux who is on Asa’s transition team assigned to Economic Development. We reviewed the Retirement/Relocation white paper in hopes that our new Governor would make this one of his priorities. Steve was very interested and agreed to hear Jim Harlow give his full retirement relocation presentation. Steve told me that he met with Jim and Jerry Y. and that Jim did an excellent job of presenting this issue. Steve told me that Asa is not going to keep the current Economic Development Director and that they are looking for a new one with a track record of success.
  • Lanny Fite and I had lunch on November 14.He is busy becoming familiar with his new job as our Saline County HSV State Representative. He told me he was assigned to three important committees of which he was very pleased. They are Revenue and Taxation, Governmental Affairs (responsible for state government), and the Legislative Agenda, which decides the priorities of what comes to the floor. I also reviewed the Retirement/Relocation white paper with him. He was very familiar with the issue and gave us his support. He asked to be updated on any new information on this issue. He was unaware of the state’s retirement/relocation meeting recently held in Little Rock and was pleased the state’s internet site will emphasize retirement/relocation more.
  • I attended the Benton Chamber of Commerce Gov’t Affairs meeting on November 18. They were very pleased the “wet” county issue passed. Since then the Chamber has received inquiries (2 restaurants and 2 hotels) about the possibilities of coming to Saline County. It was reported that the state would allow up to 21 new liquor stores in Saline County. However, the county must get their permit process and procedures in place, so they estimated April 2015 would be the earliest new permits would be issued.
  • 4 – At the Chamber meeting, I met Alan Clark, who is the State Senator for the 13th District, which includes parts of Saline and Garland counties. I asked him what he believed were that top priorities that would be addressed in the coming state legislative session. He put forth the following priorities that I found very interesting:

A – Tort reform. He used some medical examples of excessive lawsuits that were driving up medical costs

B – Prison beds. He said we need more beds to help control the crime rate.

C – School reform. He said we must improve student test scores, do a better job of adult education, and use more charter schools, using the Helena KIP charter school as an example.

D – Private option. He said the current plan does not provide for seniors, children, or disabilities. It does apply to able body people who are able to work, but only half of them do. He said there was no drug testing and no deductible. On present course, he said it will cost the state $200 million by 2017 if changes are not made.

  • I suggested to him that retirement/relocation was another priority he may wish to consider and told him why. He seemed open and receptive to this issue.

Hot Springs—Cindy Calhoun

Community Water Committee:

  • A subcommittee has been appointed from the Community Water Committee to find solutions or compromises to the water issues facing the city and county, ones that can be agreed upon and presented to the respective governing bodies for approval and activation.

Downtown revitalization:

  • The City Board of Directors tabled the resolution to condemn the Majestic Hotel property until the second meeting in December so the staff can do further research. A letter had been sent to the owners to notify them of the possible Board action to condemn the property. The owners have submitted a cleanup plan to the ADEQ and the plan provides for bid documents to be completed no later than November 20, and to provide the AEDQ a copy of the bid documents no later than November 25.
  • The Hot Springs Advertising and Promotion committee has approved proceeding with the urban renewal project around the convention center along College Street. The project is to develop an outdoor event center, improve the parking lot, and if there are enough funds left to also improve the last piece of undeveloped land at the corner of Gulpha and Laurel Streets.

Sentinel-Record Gold Standard Awards:

  • Hot Springs City Manager, David Watkins, has been named one of the 20 Sentinel-Record’s Gold Standard award winners for 2014. The Gold Standard award recognizes 20 influential leaders in the Hot Springs Community who have offered a helping hand and made a positive impact on others’ lives with their accomplishments.

NPMC expansion:

  • National Park Medical Center broke ground on November 18 on the 67,000-square foot expansion project that will create a stand-alone heart and vascular center of excellence and renovate and provide additional space for the existing emergency department.

CHI St. Vincent’s new president named:

  • It was announced on November 20 that Anthony Houston has been hired as the new president of CHI St. Vincent Hot Springs. He was the vice president and chief operating officer at SSM St. Mary’s Hospital in Jefferson City, Mo.

Oaklawn Expansion and new Website:

  • On November 3rd, Oaklawn opened a key section of the new gaming area, bringing Oaklawn closer to the completion of its $20 million expansion. This key section includes a foyer, gift shop, Silks Bar and approximately 18,000 sq. ft. of gaming space. The entire expansion will encompass 55,000 sq. ft. They now have greeters who welcome everyone who enters the park. They are trained in customer service and know what’s happening every day. Oaklawn wants visitors to walk in and have a great experience from the start.
  • To go along with the $20 million expansion, Oaklawn has launched a new website that is easier to navigate while showcasing all that they have to offer. Again, Oaklawn wants visitors, whether in the park or on their website, to have a great experience.

Demographics—Lu Otto

  • Preparation continues on three Village demographic reports: a review of reports on early Village demographics through 2010; an analysis of current household types and family composition in the Village; and a demographic analysis of 2014 Village voting patterns. These reports will appear first in the VOICE, subject to VOICE approval, and then be on permanent file in the Demographics data bank.
  • We await arrival of the latest American Community Survey data from the Census bureau, 2013 edition, scheduled for release on December 4. A PowerPoint presentation on current Village demographics will be available shortly thereafter.

Water—George Bollier

  • Lakes - Lake Pineda and Lake DeSoto are being drawn down to allow for silt removal over the next few months. Work at Lake Pineda will begin in December and in addition to silt removal, large rip rap will be installed at the upstream end of the lake. When incoming flows are high, the flow has been washing out the edge of the channel and impacting both POA and private property. The rip rap should minimize the bank erosion. Work on Lake DeSoto will begin in early 2015.
  • Wastewater - A request for qualifications for performing an infiltration/inflow study has been prepared and will be sent to engineering firms soon. The study will focus on the western end of the Village where most of the gravity sewers are located. During major rain events a significant amount of rainwater gets into the sewer system and several overflows have occurred during 2014. The goal of the study is to identify the specific areas where rainwater is entering the system and develop solutions for eliminating the extraneous flow.
  • Lake levels (in inches below spillway, except for Lago) are:
    Isabella-full
    Maria- -4 3/4
    Sophia- -1 1/2
    Estrella- -7 1/4
    Granada- -1 1/4
    Balboa- -5
    Coronado- Full
    Pineda- -82 1/4
    Cortez- Full
    Desoto- -69 1/4
    Segovia- -5
    Lake Lago- -9 ft. 4"
    Secchi disk readings (in inches of depth) were Isabella at 48, Estrella at 49, Granada at 96, Balboa at 192, and Cortez was 60.
    Average water consumption for November was 1.58 mgd.
    There was a break-in at the Cedar Creek WWTP, and also a foaming problem at the plant. Billy believes the foaming may be caused by the use of bleach and other sprays at the animal shelter. Discussions are being held with animal welfare

Schools—John Lands