Council To Consider Three Items Tonight That Matter To You

There are three items on tonight’s Oro Valley Town Council meeting agenda that are of particular importance to residents. We have previously reported on the three. Click the links if you want to learn more about each.

Broadening the use of the half percent sales tax

The council will consider broadening the use of the half percent “municipal golf- community center” sales tax subsidy. The resolution if approved, would free dollars from the Community Center Fund to be used to support other parks and recreation uses. This is important to you because it will allow the council to use these funds for activities like the build-out of Naranja Park, improvements at Steam Pump Ranch, and completion of the town’s trails system. These are all top priorities of Oro Valley residents per the survey conducted by the town last year. 

This is not a public hearing. That hearing was held at the last council session. The item had been listed on this agenda as a “hearing”; however, that word is now lined-out in the agenda. It may have been the intention of the town to hold a public hearing; however, it could not provide proper 15-day public notice in the “Daily Territorial” for this to happen.

The council conversation on this should be lively.

Study session on the “Town Manager Recommended Budget”
A study session occurs after the regular meeting adjourns. The session is the council’s first look at the 2021-22 Town Manager Recommended Budget. This session is important to you because it involves how your money will be spent next year. There are two big budget non recurring items. One is a decision on funding a $27million plan to pay down the towns public safety pension liability. The other is a decision on funding $26.7million in parks improvements. This includes municipal golf and community center improvements. Decisions on these and other items will be forthcoming in future meetings. Tonight and continuing tomorrow night, the council will hear about the entire budget. We expect department heads to present their request.

The presentations tonight should be informative.

Expansion of Oro Vista apartments
The expansion of the Oro Vista apartments is for building two two-story buildings built on the dirt lot next to Noble Hops Restaurant, facing Lambert Lane. The lot is currently planned for restaurant use. The request is for council to approve a change to the Master Development Plan for the site area and to approve the conceptual site plan.

The council will only discuss this proposal item if one of them pulls it off the consent agenda. Otherwise, it will get blanket approval. Some, perhaps all of the council members visited the site this past Monday. We will learn what they think tonight.

You can view the full agenda for the meeting here. That also provides a link to the zoom meeting.