NE Valley Times

During a recent session, the Fountain Hills Town Council heard a request to rezone a property for multi-unit development in a residential area, blocking an 80-unit development that it said didn’t preserve the culture of the neighborhood.

The council ultimately rejected the request.

At its June 6 meeting, streamed on YouTube, the council for the suburb northeast of Phoenix heard a proposal for rezoning from Senderos at Fountain Hills. Amid split opinions, the developer was seeking a zoning change for 6.3 acres situated on the southeast corner of East Palisades Boulevard and North Mountainside Drive. 

During the session, it was noted the tract included two parcels, with one zoned R-1 for single family residential and another zoned R4 for multi-family use, and the developers hoped to change the entire tract to R3 multifamily residential zoning district. Michael Maerowitz, an attorney with Snell and Wilmer representing the developers, made a presentation to council for the developers during session.

“This is clearly a rezoning application that very much improves the status quo,” Council member Allen Skillicorn said during the meeting, and he asked about the size of the units proposed.

Maerowitz said developers were planning to build 70 studio units on the property, before expanding the current 80-unit proposal, which he said they believed was in line with the neighborhood. 

The attorney also told the council that if the proposal was not approved, Senderos at Fountain Hills would move forward with the 70-unit plan on the southern parcel, with a more urban aesthetic that would block in the single-family area.

In the developers’ proposal, it would include four buildings with a total of 80 units. The buildings would be no more than three stories, and parking would be built into the hillside on the property, it was noted during the meeting. 

The project would include one- two-, and three-bedroom units. Amenities would include a swimming pool, and the design is set to flow with single-family properties to the north as well as the existing multi-family units south of the property.

This development matter attracted a number of Fountain Hills residents who wanted to voice their position. Many agreed the proposal doesn’t fit with the feel of the neighborhood that they moved into, and some maintained that the developer isn’t concerned about the best interests of residents or the town. 

Council member Gerry Friedel also expressed misgivings with the plan.

“I have major concerns about the traffic going onto Palisades,’ Friedel said. “No matter what you do to that intersection, you can’t improve the sightlines there. Period.”

Friedel said it was unfair to change the zoning for residents, who purchased homes in the area believing the zoning was set, and he noted the opposition.

“We have to listen to residents,” he said during the session.

Council member Sharron Grzybowski asked whether developers would have to work with the town on their alternative proposal should the request be denied.

“If the applicant builds their 70-unit 30-foot tall buildings on a mountainside, is there any way to force them to agree to the stipulations that are listed in the staff report for us, like preserving the views and the traffic mitigation, if [the council] does not approve the 80 unit alternative," she asked.

Council members were told there would be no public hearings on the development of the southern parcel, but that didn’t sway Mayor Ginny Dickey.

“I have to default to the neighbors,” Dickey said. “I had hoped they would change their mind before we got to this point. Rezoning is something is something I have very hesitant to do. I guess I am not going to be able to do it tonight, either.”

Grzybowski decided to support the 80-unit development, and she was joined by council member Brenda Kalivianaki; however, there were not enough votes to approve the rezoning request and the proposal was rejected.