Jonesboro, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – August 17, 2025 – The Jonesboro City Council Tuesday night will consider first reading of an ordinance that would rezone property in the Southern Hills subdivision off Southwest Drive to accommodate a proposed grocery store.
Carol Caldwell appeared before the Metropolitan Area Planning Commission (MAPC) last week on behalf of Southern Hills Real Estate, LLC and Prateek Gera who signed the rezoning application.
MAPC approved the request to rezone almost seven acres of property within the Southern Hills development from PD-M Multi-Family and Office/Senior Living to PD-M Commercial. MAPC approval means the request moves on to the full City Council.
“I’ve been trying to get a grocery store out there for three years,” Caldwell told MAPC members. “Are you telling us one’s coming?” asked MAPC member Jimmy Cooper. “I’ve got to get it rezoned first,” Caldwell quipped.
The property address listed on the application is 3412 Southwest Drive. The seven acres identified in the rezoning request are along the North side of Southern Ridge Boulevard between Jaxon Drive and Keller’s Chapel Road. Southern Ridge Boulevard runs east-west through the Southern Hills development.
Caldwell noted that construction is underway that will soon connect Southwest Drive with South Culberhouse through the Southern Hills development.
“Southern Ridge will be a three-lane road connecting through to Culberhouse,” Caldwell told MAPC members, saying that was the reason the proposed grocery store was interested in that location. “There’s fixin’ to be a whole lot of traffic through there.”
The rezoning ordinance is listed as “first reading” on Tuesday’s Jonesboro City Council agenda. The City Council meets at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday night in the Municipal Building Council Chambers, located at 300 S. Church St.
