Some local residents voiced concern about speeding at Tuesday’s Batesville City Council meeting.
Mayor Rick Elumbaugh and council members heard reports from downtown residents about witnessing drivers consistently going well above the 25 mph speed limit signs posted in Batesville’s historical district.
Amanda Bruce, who lives in a house on Boswell Street, told the council she has witnessed all types of vehicles traveling at high rates of speed in front of her home.
“I sit on my porch daily. The 25 mph speed limit is not obeyed or enforced,” Bruce told council members. “Not only are private citizens speeding, but also school buses, fire trucks, police cars, and postal vehicles.”
One Batesville City Council member, Fred Krug, shared a recent experience where he called out a truck for speeding, he estimated, between 60 to 70 mph on a downtown street. Another longtime downtown resident told the council he and his wife are considering moving due to the constant speeding on College Street.
Bruce said downtown residents have notified city leaders of the issue, but she said their pleas have gone “unanswered.”
“Please don’t wait until something horrific happens to take action,” Bruce said. “Be proactive.”
She also pointed out recent comments at the April 13 city council meeting by Batesville Police Chief Alan Cockrill. Cockrill was quoted as saying at that meeting that he wasn’t “a big fan of tickets” and that the department had received complaints from businesses concerning police stopping vehicles in their respective parking areas. Cockrill made the comments when he told the council that the department was going to start increasing the enforcement of distracted drivers.
“For him to make those statements at a live-streaming city council meeting is letting the entire city know what is acceptable without any fear of consequences and that the purchase of radar guns was apparently a huge waste of taxpayer money,” Bruce said. Bruce noted that council member Krug had earlier told her the city had purchased radar guns to help combat the speeding problem. At the April 13 meeting, Cockrill noted the effectiveness of radar operation in Batesville is limited.
“This town’s nearly impossible to run radar because your primary two areas are Harrison Street and St. Louis Street,” he told council members then. “There’s nowhere to pull anybody over. If we pull somebody over, and they block a business parking lot, my phone rings that we’ve shut down the business parking lot for 15 minutes. I mean, it’s just not designed, really, to run radar in town where our accidents happen.”
Bruce also said she had been told by police officers on two different occasions that “…speeding tickets are not written because most people can’t afford to pay the fine or take off work for a court appearance.”
“As a mom whose children play outside and ride bikes on and near these streets, those words coming from a police officer, who took an oath to defend and protect, were appalling to hear,” Bruce said. “A child’s life, my child’s life, is worth immeasurably more than the inconvenience of a speeding ticket and a court date.”
“I’m not a great big fan of tickets, but we’ve got to the point with 52 accidents in one month, that we’ve got to do something,” Cockrill told council members at the April 13 meeting when discussing his department stepping up enforcement of distracted driving. “I’ve talked to my guys. We’re fixing to start running the streets — not necessarily for speed as much as cell phone use. And I’m giving the public the opportunity to be aware that we’re going to do it in unmarked vehicles.”
The chief told council members at the meeting last month that he estimated 90 percent of those 52 accidents involved distracted driving with accidents involving speeding making up the other 10 percent.
“It’s just got out of hand, and part of it is my fault, ” Cockrill said at the April meeting. “My guys know I’m not a big ticket-writing person.”
At the Tuesday meeting, Cockrill noted patrolling the area is limited by manpower and recommended that citizens who see excessive speeders contact the city attorney’s office and submit an affidavit. Cockrill said it could then be determined if a warrant should be issued.
“I mean, I need help just like they do,” Cockrill said, referring to the concerned residents. “I’ve got 26 people for 11,000 people.”
“On the big scale of the majority of my administration staff, our job is to police the larger crimes, the felonies,” the chief said. Cockrill told the council the department has four to five patrol officers on duty for shifts.
Elumbaugh said at Tuesday’s meeting that he has had discussions with Cockrill regarding the speed enforcement issue and said there have been some recent changes made in patrolling. The mayor also told the chief at the meeting to have his department start running more radar in the city.
“I appreciate the officers,” the mayor said. “They do an unbelievable job. It’s not the easiest job in the world right now to be a police officer, especially in this day and time.”
Elumbaugh said he welcomed the turnout of concerned citizens and the dialogue between the residents and the city.
“We want what’s best for Batesville, Arkansas. I care deeply for this community. We don’t have all the answers, but I guarantee you we’re going to try to make it right in whatever we do. It’s challenging to sit up here and make some of those decisions. We’re not always right, but if we’re not right, we want to know that. And we want to know how to improve things,” the mayor said.
In other council news, members gave the go-ahead for the owners of Big’s Easy on Main Street to apply to the Arkansas Alcohol Beverage Control for a private club permit. It also approved a revision to an ordinance regarding a private club permit for Las Club Catrinas of Batesville, which will be located at 2375 Byers St.
Council members also approved two resolutions to utilize federal aid funds for work on Main Street and the Aberdeen Drive walking/bicycle trail.
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