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Planning commission approves 16-bed mental health facility at 5119 Wheeler Avenue with conditions
Summary
A conditional use to convert an existing building at 5119 Wheeler Avenue into a 16‑bed mental health hospital was approved 6-1; the approval bars admission of convicted violent offenders above class B and includes screening measures.
The Fort Smith Planning Commission on Sept. 9 approved a conditional use allowing a 16‑bed mental health hospital to operate at 5119 Wheeler Avenue.
Planning staff presented Conditional Use 10-9-25, a request by owner Mike Hawthorne to allow the 8,548-square-foot building in an I-1 industrial zone to be used as a mental health hospital. The application would permit conversion of the existing structure into a facility with 16 bedrooms; the applicant proposed landscaping and an opaque screening fence for the dumpster. Staff recommended approval with conditions, and noted neighborhood concerns raised during a Sept. 2 neighborhood meeting about security, program participant screening and after-hours activity.
During the commission hearing the applicant described a screening process and regular drug testing. In response to a commissioner’s question, an applicant representative said patients who test positive for illegal substances would be removed from the program and that background checks and a pre-admission screening process are part of intake procedures; the applicant also agreed that convicted “*** offenders or patients who have been convicted of a violent crime class B felony or greater” would not be admitted, language reflected in the staff recommendations.
Commissioners voted 6–1 to approve the conditional use (David Tyler recorded the lone opposing vote). The approval includes the staff condition prohibiting admission of convicted violent offenders at class B or greater and relies on the applicant’s screening and drug-testing commitments as described on the record.
The site is existing development; the applicant agreed to additional screening at the dumpster, interior landscaping and to limit admissions per the screening criteria. The commission’s approval allows the owner to proceed under the conditions recorded in the staff report; any material changes to the plan will require additional planning approval.
