Government Briefs

Buena Vista

Residents Request Land

Several homeowners on Vista Links Drive in Buena Vista are seeking to acquire small slivers of land adjacent to their properties that are currently owned by the city.

Tom Roberts, the city’s director of community development, told City Council that the parcels were initially part of the golf course property that was sold but ultimately transferred back to the city along with the road’s rightof- way in 2022.

The parcels have minimal value to the city, he said, but the city is responsible for mowing the grass. If the parcels were conveyed to the adjacent property owners, a utility easement would be retained because there are existing water and sewer lines in this area. He said the current right-of-way for the road, at 50feet wide, is ample for a wider road and a sidewalk – the existing pavement is 16-feet wide.

The recommendation from staff was to transfer the slivers of land to the adjacent property owners at no cost but Council members raised objections. Steve Webb and Ron Cash each said not charging for the land would set a poor precedent. They argued that the city should abide by a policy to charge a standard rate for selling public properties.

The consensus of Council appeared to be in favor of selling the land.

Home Occupation Meeting Held

Neighbors and the owner of a home occupation in the Racy Acres neighborhood met recently with Buena Vista’s mayor, city manager and police chief in an effort to resolve their differences. At City Council’s meeting last Thursday, Nov. 7, David Herring, husband of business owner Sheena Herring, thanked Mayor Tyson Cooper, City Manager Jason Tyree and Police Chief Wayne Handley for their participation in the meeting.

“The meeting went well,” said Cooper. “I felt edified.” Council and staff will be studying the issues raised and hope to come up with a draft of proposed revisions to the city ordinance governing home occupations. The work is expected to take six to seven months, according to the mayor.

Neighbors had raised issues at previous City Council meetings about traffic generated by the business, S&Crew Sales. Supporters of the business came to its defense at a subsequent meeting.