The Oro Valley Town Council is conducting a public hearing on the PAD Amendment for Parcel 7-1 at the Town Council meeting next Wednesday, November 16. Click here to read this agenda item.
Please note that the town no longer refers to this as a clarification of the word "may." No. This is an amendment to the Rancho Vistoso PAD that the Oro Valley Town Council is going to consider and vote upon.
This is an amendment upon which the seven members of Council will use their judgment to substitute for the judgment of the residents of Rancho Vistoso as codified in the Rancho Vistoso PAD.
The following is the amendment upon which the Council is going to vote:
"Multi-family residential development shall be permitted on the portion of Parcel 7-I west of the central wash. Commercial development shall be permitted on the portion of Parcel 7-I east of the central wash. Multi-family residential portions of the development shall be designed according to the PAD’s High Density Residential development standards. Commercial portions of the development shall be designed according to the PAD’s Community Commercial development standards. Pedestrian connectivity shall be provided between residential and commercial portions of the development. A minimum of twenty percent of the gross land area shall be provided as open space."(Source: ORDINANCE NO. (O)11-27, Attachment A)
Is this vote a "slam dunk" in favor of the Developer?
We were under the impression that changing this parcel to apartment use would require a 6 vote super majority of Council. Investigating this is why this item was tabled from a previous agenda. If so, it will never pass.
But....does this new approach, this new amendment, now only require a 4 vote majority? If so, it gives leeway for Developer Appointed Council Person Steve Solomon to vote no; to look "good to the voters" and still get this amendment approved.
There is some fear among residents that the approval of apartment use for the Rancho Vistoso parcel 7-1 is a slam dunk. We have been informed that Tucson Electric, the Developer, and members of the Town's Development Review Board were surveying the property this week, tagging trees for removal.
Is it possible that this is "playing out" as we were previously alerted that it might "play out": The Council looks like heroes by rejecting the General Plan Amendment for the Beztak request but approves the PAD wording clarification for Parcel 7-1?
We certainly hope that each Town Council member is "above" this sort of nonsense.
If not, then shame on those Council members who participate in this sham.
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9 comments:
Is this special area policy 13 addition to neighborhood policies merely a loophole created by Planning & Zoning, Staff, and Councilmembers? Did the legality of the wording just “disappear”? Do the residents of Rancho Vistoso have any say in modifications to their PAD?
Will the majority of the Council, again, vote as they please? Will the Council again IGNORE the residents of Oro Valley?
I must agree with Zee Man. This is a sham, and I am ashamed of the Staff and Councilmembers who participate in this.
Does anyone know if the owner of the PAD, the applicant, the developer, or the consultants contributed money to the election campaigns of Mayor Hiremath, Vice Mayor Snider, and Councilmembers Hornat and Waters?
According to DIS, there are 8 other properties already zoned for HDR covering 152.8 acres & allowing 1,792 units. Why don't they develop those areas?
Wasn't the OV Gen Plan approved to prevent rezoning of properties for other uses? Doesn't anyone on TC have the ethics to stand by what many would consider a "contract" with the residents who voted for it???
Campaign donations are public info. Look for names of Humberto Lopez, Paul Oland...
I thought Humberto was brok-o?
I saw a surveyor out there on Thursday afternoon, November 10th, at approx. 1:30 PM.
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This Monday, we will be posting 2010 Campaign Contribution Information for Mayor Hiremath and Council Persons Hornat and Waters.
You will find, based on our first cut, that Venture West contributed significant amounts to both Waters and Hornat.
Venture west is the Developer of Parcel 7-1.
Stay tuned for more!
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I do not mind apartments. I think we have many fine apartments in OV and we will have more in the future. I just think that they should be built on land that was zoned for them. No need to modify existing covenants with our residents when so much land remains with appropriate zoning. This action will be a good test of our council-- are they developer oriented or citizen oriented? I will be watching to see.
Zee,
Interesting confirmation of what many thought was going on. Do you remember that Hornat, Waters and a third member of Council made of point of visiting HSL's new apartment complex on River just prior to a 7-1 meeting? Councilman Hornat made a point of mentioning the size of the apartments' bathrooms. What a shame Council didn't visit the impacted subdivision to better understand their view of this project.
Desert Voice... What a wonderful idea - having Oro Valley Councilmembers visit the impacted subdivision to better understand their view of HSL's project at River.
Cares,
Don't you wonder why Council did not think about that at all? Yet HSL invited them to visit...Next logical question is why...
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