Arkansas Code Annotated

Ark. Code Ann. § 14-56-402 (2026)

Authority generally

✓ current as of May 2026
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section JustiaArk. Code CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

Cities of the first and second class and incorporated towns shall have the power to adopt and enforce plans for the coordinated, adjusted, and harmonious development of the municipality and its environs.

History. Acts 1957, No. 186, § 1; 1963, No. 36, § 1; A.S.A. 1947, § 19-2825.

Case Notes

Conflict of Jurisdiction.

Where there is a conflict over the exercise of jurisdiction over roads in an unincorporated portion of the county, between the county court and any creature of the legislature, the latter must give way. Butler v. City of Little Rock, 231 Ark. 834, 332 S.W.2d 812 (1960).

Nature of Authority.

A municipal corporation's exercise of its zoning power is the equivalent of an act by the General Assembly. City of Lowell v. M & N Mobile Home Park, 323 Ark. 332, 916 S.W.2d 95 (1996).

By enacting the ordinance in question, the board approved the recommended action and amended a prior ordinance, but it rezoned the subject property and added new conditions to accommodate the rezoning and, thus, the board took legislative action delegated to it under this section; because the action was not administrative, the landowners who challenged the ordinance were not required to proceed under § 14-56-425 and the trial court had subject matter jurisdiction. Summit Mall Co. v. Lemond, 355 Ark. 190, 132 S.W.3d 725 (2003).

Rezoning Power.

Where a chancery court agreed with a city and rezoned certain land as commercial, it exceeded its authority, since the legislature only gave the rezoning power to city councils or the legislative body of a city. City of Little Rock v. Breeding, 273 Ark. 437, 619 S.W.2d 664 (1981).

Cited: Baldridge v. City of N. Little Rock, 258 Ark. 246, 523 S.W.2d 912 (1975); McMinn v. City of Little Rock, 275 Ark. 458, 631 S.W.2d 288 (1982); Potocki v. City of Ft. Smith, 279 Ark. 19, 648 S.W.2d 462 (1983); City of Fayetteville v. IBI, Inc., 280 Ark. 484, 659 S.W.2d 505 (1983); Mings v. Ft. Smith, 288 Ark. 42, 701 S.W.2d 705 (1986).

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 7 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1996–2025 · leading case: City of Lowell v. M & N Mobile Home Park, Inc., 916 S.W.2d 95 (Ark. 1996).
City of Lowell v. M & N Mobile Home Park, Inc., 916 S.W.2d 95 (Ark. 1996). · cites it 4× “" Ark.Code Ann. § 14-56-402 (1987). *100 The sole issue before the chancery court should have been whether there was a rational basis for the city's refusal to rezone the five acres.”
Summit Mall Co. LLC v. Lemond, 132 S.W.3d 725 (Ark. 2003). · cites it 4× “By enacting the ordinance, the Board took legislative action which is a power delegated to it by the General Assembly under Ark.Code Ann. § 14-56-402 (Repl.1998) ("Cities of the first and second class and incorporated towns shall have the power to adopt and enforce plans for the…”
Green v. City of Jacksonville, 182 S.W.3d 124 (Ark. 2004). · cites it 4× “Ark.Code Ann. § 14-56-402 (Repl.1998). The legislative body adopting the plan may create a planning commission.”
Brock v. Townsell, 2009 Ark. 224, 309 S.W.3d 179. “§ 14-56-402 (Repl. 1998). These statutes are to be construed liberally.”
Camden Cmty. Dev. Corp. v. Sutton, 5 S.W.3d 439 (Ark. 1999). · cites it 2× “If that legislative authority has been delegated to a city council by the General Assembly, then rezoning may be the subject of an initiative petition under Amendment 7.”
Arkansas State High. & Transp. Dep't v. RAM Outdoor Advert., 2015 Ark. App. 713, 479 S.W.3d 51. · cites it 2× “Arkansas Code Annotated section 14-56-402 (Repl. 1998) provides that cities of the first and second class and incorporated towns shall have the power to adopt and enforce plans for the coordinated, adjusted, and harmonious development of the municipality and its'fenvirons.”
Shelley Hause & Stephen Hause v. City of Fayetteville, Arkansas; the Fayetteville Plan. Comm'n; & the Fayetteville City Council, No. CV-24-663 (Ark. Oct. 16, 2025). · cites it 4× “2 Arkansas Code Annotated section 14-56-402, construed liberally as section 14-56-401 allows, provides that “[c]ities .”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.