How a Recent Board of Adjustments Case Reflects Shifting Development Patterns in Bentonville

A recent Board of Adjustments agenda item offers a small but useful snapshot of how residential development is evolving in Bentonville. At the November 12 meeting, HSK Homes LLC requested a variance for a lot at 5404 SW Remington Road, located in the Summerlin subdivision.

The property—a triangular, irregularly shaped parcel—is the final buildable lot within its phase of the subdivision. Under current R-1 zoning requirements, the site must meet 20-foot front setbacks, 7-foot side setbacks, and a 25-foot rear setback. According to the applicant, the geometry of the lot and an existing utility easement limit the buildable area to the point where a standard single-family structure cannot fit without encroaching into the rear setback.

The request seeks a reduction of the rear setback from 25 feet to approximately 20 feet at two corners of the proposed home. The applicant states that the lot’s design predates the current owner and that the hardship results from the original subdivision layout, not from any action by the builder.

Cases like this don’t necessarily signal a policy change on their own, but they can illustrate common development challenges within growing cities. As subdivisions mature and remaining lots become more irregular, builders may encounter situations where traditional zoning standards do not align neatly with existing platted parcels.

In Bentonville’s case, this variance highlights the tension that can occur between long-standing R-1 setback requirements and increasingly complex lot shapes created as subdivisions approach build-out. It also reflects how infill development can differ from earlier phases of construction, where lots were more standardized and constraints fewer.

The Board of Adjustments will evaluate the request based on the city’s six criteria for variances, including whether the hardship is unique to the property, whether it was self-created, and whether a variance would impact surrounding properties or grant special privileges inconsistent with code.

While small in scale, items like this offer insight into how Bentonville’s residential fabric continues to adapt as available land within subdivisions becomes more limited and development patterns evolve accordingly.