Jonesboro, AR – Jonesboro Right Now – Tractor Supply Co.’s (TSC) plans to relocate to the vacant Fred’s building on South Caraway Road have encountered a roadblock.
On Tuesday, the Board of Zoning Adjustments (BZA) voted to deny a variance request that would have exempted the property at 2308 S. Caraway Road from a city cross-access management ordinance.
The variance, submitted by developer William Walker on behalf of property owner Stacey Blaxton, sought to remove the requirement for a shared access point connecting the existing building and parking area to the adjacent lot to the south. A core component of the request was the neighboring property owner formally refusing to comply with a cross-access agreement.
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In a letter to the BZA sent in July, Tim Cooper of Cooper Land and Development Company, Inc., which owned the adjacent properties at 2400 and 2406 S. Caraway Road, declined to grant the necessary easement.
“After careful consideration and consultation regarding Cooper Land Development Company, Inc.’s property rights and interests, I must respectfully decline to grant the cross-access easement,” Cooper wrote. “I do not wish to encumber the Cooper Property with the proposed cross-access easement”.
During Tuesday’s meeting, Walker argued that forcing a shared entrance with the Cooper lot poses safety and logistical issues, emphasizing that Tractor Supply hopes to remain at the 2.30-acre location for decades.
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Walker further noted that the property only has enough frontage for a single entrance and that because Tractor Supply delivery trucks require heavy-duty pavement and a tight turnaround to navigate the lot, adding shared traffic between consumers and drivers passing by would be a problem.
He also stressed the development’s financial commitment to the site, stating that they are already investing hundreds of thousands of dollars to cover ditches and add sidewalks to meet other city ordinances.
Board members, however, expressed concerns that granting the variance would set a precedent for future businesses to request similar exemptions.
They pointed out that the city had previously suggested a compromise to mark the turnout on the site plan to satisfy the ordinance, which would not force immediate construction unless the neighboring property undergoes a significant redevelopment.
Walker explained that Tractor Supply’s legal counsel advised against this, warning that documenting it on the plan could legally lock the company into building the access point in the future.
During the public comment portion of the meeting, a resident spoke in favor of Tractor Supply, saying BZA had previously granted a cross-access variance for a nearby gas station and chicken restaurant on Caraway Road. The resident urged the board to extend the same flexibility and review what had been approved previously.
Under the city’s zoning appeals process, aggrieved parties can formally appeal the BZA’s decision to a circuit court.
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