Future Forward: Meet a Bella Vista City Planner
Meet Taylor Robertson, Planning and Development Director for Bella Vista
Meet Taylor Robertson, Planning and Development Director for Bella Vista
Seneca, Missouri. Just south of Joplin, Missouri
I received my Bachelors of Science Degree (Political Science) from Missouri Southern State University in Joplin, Missouri and my Master of Public Administration Degree from Arkansas State University in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
6 years this February.
Per my undergraduate program, I was required to take an internship my senior year. My mentor professor highly recommended the Joplin City Manager’s office so I applied and received a position that turned into a transportation planning internship! For a year we focused on bike and pedestrian safety via road diet studies on Main Street, parklet program policy analysis, and bike lane improvements. I like to think it was fate as I didn’t particularly know what city planning was until I took that internship. After graduating from MSSU, an opening for a planner in Bella Vista popped up and I threw my name into the hat…the rest is history!
It’s hard to pick just one. But if I had to, it would be the Urban Land Institute’s local government policy roadmap for affordability in Northwest Arkansas that I participated in with the NWA Community of Practice of Planners (CoP), ULI, and Smart Growth America. The professional networking, relationship building, and education growth that took place during that project was unmeasurable.
Another project of equal value that I am proud of is the Zoning and Development Code Reform that my team has been working on in Bella Vista with Freese and Nichols for the last 16 or so months. Rezoning the entire city and rewriting a code tailored to the uniqueness of Bella Vista has been a task unlike any other. If you don’t know about our uniqueness, let’s get a coffee sometime.
Other honorable mentions include writing our first outdoor lighting ordinance, monarch butterfly and pollinator ordinance, short-term rental ordinance, residential tree planting and preservation ordinance, and the ongoing effort of septic system education projects. As you might tell, public policy is my favorite aspect of being a planner.
Being a planner means to be a voice. You are speaking for your city’s current residents, future residents, stakeholders, best practices, ethics, city staff, visitors, the region, colleagues, the environment, wildlife, or yourself. We do what we do to achieve optimal, safe outcomes for the majority of everyone and everything involved and to do that we have to voice ideas and concerns in a thoughtful, equitable manner in our day to day operations. Whether that’s reviewing a permit, having a developer meeting, holding a public engagement event, participating in regional meetings or giving a report to an appointed or elected body. We are a voice.
During our zoning and development code reform in particular…I have drawn inspiration from a few different city’s during my 2024 travels and policy research. Since we are unique to our neighboring cities here in Northwest Arkansas with our 100+ miles of trails, 7 lakes, creeks, and steep topography, a lot of my inspiration has been drawn outside of the area—even in different countries. Whistler, British Columbia in particular provides inspiration in its village design, steep slopes, outdoor recreation emphasis, and its bike and pedestrian amenities. You can’t go wrong from drawing inspiration from a city that has a bike score of 93.
I would have to say the unwavering growth that we’re (all) experiencing. Our staff has slightly grown but the development has exponentially grown. For example, in 2019, we received approximately 293 single-family building applications. In 2024, we received approximately 809. In 2019 we received approximately 399 applications for SWPPP/grading on individual sites. In 2024, we received approximately 890 individual site applications. Trying to balance the current applications while keeping long-range planning in our ever-rotating wheel is definitely our number one challenge.
We are currently starting the final processes of our Zoning and Development Code Reform as well as the City Rezone. Over the next couple months, the final public involvement stage will be ramping up. We hope that this 18 month long project will provide a final product for Bella Vista and Northwest Arkansas that includes aspects of housing attainability, streamlining development, and some unique first-takes in the area. We invite all those in planning and adjacent fields to join us at these public involvement meetings once the dates are set! We are hoping to take it to Planning Commission in March of this year.
I would like to see a continued effort in relationship building amongst the region’s planners and developers. APA, ULI, Groundwork, and WFF have made impeccable efforts since I’ve been at Bella Vista and I hope that continues throughout the region. Relationships are an integral step to a cohesive, smart, and regional approach to what is coming to Northwest Arkansas in the next 20 years—continued growth. We have to do this together.
That it exists! Get involved. Engage your city planners, go to your city/county/regional planning board meetings, email your commissioners/board members, go to city hall and learn who your planning staff are, and check out the city planning project website and agendas—keep up with what’s going on your community and participate. We can’t do what we do without YOU.