Public Hearing: Consideration of a Major Amendment to the Flagstaff Regional Plan for Little America Hotels and Resorts, Inc.

A public hearing of the City Council is required for all applications for a major amendment to the (current) Flagstaff Regional Land Use and Transportation Plan.

None.

1. Retain, expand, and diversify economic base
2. Effective governance

No.

None at this time as the purpose of this agenda item is to hear from the public on the proposed Regional Plan amendment application for Little America Hotels and Resorts, Inc.


 
 


 
 

Design Workshop on behalf of Little America Hotels & Resorts, Inc. has submitted a Major Regional Land Use and Transportation Plan Amendment Application to the City of Flagstaff, and has submitted all required materials and studies within the legal time frames as established in City Code Title 11 (General Plans and Subdivisions). The proposed development is comprised of 537 acres south of Butler Avenue and east of Interstate 40.  Approximately 42 acres of the property includes the existing Little America hotel which is currently designated as Regional Commercial on the RP Land use Map. The remainder of the property is designated as Planning Reserve Area.
 
The Planning Reserve Areas (PRAs) are generally at the periphery of urbanized areas, are guidelines intended to accommodate a range of densities and other non-residential uses, and are considered suitable for future urban development. Land designated as PRAs do not currently have City services, but are generally close to existing development and available urban services. The Regional Plan also identifies that some of the areas are to be preserved for urban open space. A complete description of the Planning Reserve Areas may be found on Pages 1-19 through 1-20 and 1-35 through 1-38 of the existing Regional Plan, copies of which are attached.
 
The applicant is proposing to retain the existing Little America Hotel; to add a new 200-room resort associated with a new 18-hole golf course that will be open to the public; a neighborhood commercial center in the vicinity of the existing truck stop with approximately 157,000 sq. ft. of new commercial uses on 9 acres; approximately 1,400 new residential units ranging from low density, through medium density, to high density on approximately 336 acres; and a variety of recreational uses including public parks, the public golf course, FUTS and hiking trails on approximately 148 acres.
 
A detailed explanation of the requested amendment to the Regional Plan Land Use Map (Maps 3 and 4) is included in the attached report to the Planning and Zoning Commission (Page 10 of 15). Note that no text amendments to the existing Flagstaff Regional Plan are proposed.
 
The complete application and all supplementary reports are available for the City Council and the public on-line. All links are provided in the attached staff summary report to the Planning and Zoning Commission for their November 13, 2013 second public hearing.

At this time, the key consideration for the City Council is the need for a public hearing for this application based on the requirements of City Code Title 11 (General Plans and Subdivisions) and applicable state law.

Not applicable.

A summary of the benefits that the Flagstaff community may realize is included in the attached staff summary for the Planning and Zoning Commission's public hearing #2, held on November 13, 2013 at the Flagstaff Aquaplex.

Inform and Consult: Representatives for the applicant - Design Workshop - and their team hosted a required neighborhood public meeting at Little America on September 10, 2013 that was attended by 58 community members. The attached staff summary for the Planning and Zoning Commission's public hearing #2, on November 13, 2013 includes a summary of the principle issues and concerns discussed at this meeting, as well as a link to all of the comments that were submitted. The Planning and Zoning Commission has also held a work session on the Little America Regional Plan Major Amendment application on October 9, 2013, as well as required public hearings on October 23, 2013 and November 13, 2013. All materials submitted in support of the application have been posted to the City webpage since early summer, 2013.
 
On November 13, 2013 the Planning and Zoning Commission held a second public hearing on the requested major amendment application as required by state law. Approximately 25 - 30 residents attended the hearing, of which only four chose to speak to the Commission. Two of the speakers spoke in support of the project, acknowledging the many community benefits it would bring to Flagstaff and encouraging the Planning Commission to recommend its approval. The two other speakers opposed the project and urged the Commission to not recommend its approval, noting that while it was "a good proposal except for the golf course, this project sends the wrong message to Flagstaff residents about water use." Both speakers expressed concern with the proposed use of City reclaim water on the golf course, and suggested that the golf course component of the project should be removed from the proposed plan.
 
The Commission debated the merits of the project, expressed their concerns, and asked numerous questions of staff and the applicant's representative. The Commission's two greatest concerns were with regard to the use of reclaim water on the golf course, and with the residential density proposed in the project being too low. By a 5-2 vote the Commission eventually moved to approve case number PSPR20130013, the request for a major Regional Land Use and Transportation Plan Amendment for Little America Hotels and Resorts, Inc. subject to the 11 conditions as listed in the staff report (Page 14 of 15) with the addition of a new condition that would "require the use of reclaimed water on the golf courses and other open space within the project."
 
Draft minutes of the Planning and Zoning Commission's November 13, 2013 meeting are attached.

Not applicable at this time.