Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Housing committee meets in Gurdon, discusses development in community

The housing committee from Clark County Strategic Planning met with a group of 16 Gurdon residents, including Mayor Clayton and Rotary Club president Billy Tarpley.

Subsidized housing

Tom Calhoun, chairman of the committee, called the meeting to order and spoke about previous meetings in small towns in Clark County like Caddo Valley and Amity. He said there are many people in the county talking about affordable and/or retirement housing, and that there have been questions posed about city expansion and whether or not small towns are able to develop.

Sam Blackmon, from the Arkansas Housing Group, said there was housing in Gurdon, only they were vacant. The complex, located on Linden Street, is about five years old and was used for victims of Hurricane Katrina. When the hurricane victims were finished with the apartments, he said, they were trashed with vandalism and burglary, including the stripping of copper wire from all of the air conditioning units in the 16-home complex.

The property was funded by Housing and Urban Development and built by Bunn Properties strictly for the elderly. Each unit has a buzzer in case of a fall, loud doorbells for the hearing impaired and handicap access throughout the home. Each unit has one bedroom, a kitchen, a dining area, a bathroom and a porch.

Housing study

Concerning the future development of Gurdon, a comprehensive study could be in the works to find out what residents want and need as far as housing goes to help attract people to Gurdon. The study will give the housing committee something to start with in terms of what needs to be done.

But the study will be expensive  somewhere between $30,000 to $100,000, according to John French, president of Community Development Corporation. Franklin asked Calhoun where to money would come from. Calhoun said the committee may be able to get a grant. Franklin asked him if the money for the study would be available, to which he replied, I dont know.

About the cost of the study, French said, We want to get what we pay for and use it wisely.

Zoning laws

Zoning laws was another topic of discussion at the meeting.

The last sub-division in Gurdon was built about 30 years ago, according to Tambra Childres, city recorder and treasurer. She said the city has torn down 31 vacant homes. She said Gurdon does not have zoning laws, but recently passed an ordinance on regulations regarding the placement and appearance of mobile homes within the city limits.

Calhoun asked Franklin if the survey could help change zoning laws in Gurdon.

It would be like jumping off the dam at Lake DeGray, Franklin said, because any political campaign that pushed for zoning laws would undoubtedly fail.

People dont like zoning laws, he said. Weve never had any here, so it would be an unpopular situation.

The future of Gurdon

We have been considered the bedroom of Clark County, Stacy Blackard, Gurdon city council member, said. But I think thats a selling point.

Tarpley asked, In 2017 (the year set for the Strategic Planning committee to have been a success), what do we want Gurdon to look like? He said there is a large percentage of renters in Gurdon, when it should be a city of property owners, especially with the low cost of living in Gurdon.

The county needs more than just Arkadelphia, he said. It has to have Gurdon to be an economic success.

Franklin said that if the strategic planning is successful and the industry works, manufacturing jobs will pay more and bring more people into Gurdon.

He also mentioned the upgrade of Gurdons Fire Department from Class 7 to Class 5, making an insurance premium on a home the same price as one in Arkadelphia.

Calhoun reviewed the contentions of living in Gurdon: the low cost of living, the beneficial school system and the developmental opportunities available, whether they be for mobile home parks or expensive sub-divisions. He then opened the meeting for discussion of expansion.