| ITEM #: 2. DATE: 06/15/2026 AI #:2969 |
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CITY COUNCIL ACTION REPORT
| SUBJECT: | ZONING ORDINANCE COMPREHENSIVE UPDATE |
| STAFF PRESENTER(S): | Christian M. Williams, Planning Manager; Guadalupe Ortiz Cortez, Principal Planner |
OTHER PRESENTER(S):
Matthew Klyszeiko, Michael Baker International (Zoning Ordinance Update consultant)
SUMMARY
Council will receive an update on the rewrite of the Zoning Ordinance, with a focus on the proposed standards for Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), data centers, noticing requirements, and additional ordinance modernization items.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT
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RECOMMENDATION
Council to receive an update on the rewrite of the Zoning Ordinance, with a focus on the proposed standards for Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), data centers, noticing requirements, and additional ordinance modernization items, and provide guidance to staff. No action will be taken. (Christian M. Williams, Planning Manager; Guadalupe Ortiz Cortez, Principal Planner)
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no direct budget impact associated with the comprehensive update. Funding for tasks associated with the Zoning Ordinance update has been approved for this fiscal year.
BACKGROUND AND PREVIOUS ACTIONS
Arizona state law provides municipalities with the ability to enact zoning regulations for the development of the municipalities and to conserve and promote public health, safety, and general welfare (A.R.S. §9-462.01). The City's General Plan, General Plan 2035: Growing Goodyear, Planning Our Future, was ratified by voters in May 2024. In response to resident requests for continued high-quality development in the city, staff hired a Consultant (Michael Baker International) to update the Design Guidelines. The updated Design Guidelines were adopted by Council in November 2024.
Shortly thereafter, staff began working with the Consultant on an update to the Zoning Ordinance to further improve standards and support high-quality development throughout the city. Because the last comprehensive Zoning Ordinance update occurred in 1999, staff identified several items to address, including bringing the ordinance up to current standards, improving user experience, refining outdated development standards, expanding housing options to promote housing diversity, clarifying definitions, adding uses not previously included in the ordinance, and revising language to ensure compliance with state and federal law.
Together, these updates help streamline the development process while maintaining high-quality standards. Additionally, the Zoning Ordinance Rewrite is a Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Strategic Plan action item and supports the city's intent to conserve and promote public health, safety, and general welfare (A.R.S. §9-462.01) and the General Plan's Livable and Connected LC-5 goal of creating a community that distinguishes itself through high-quality character and design.
The comprehensive Zoning Ordinance update process kicked-off in January 2025. A community workshop was held on April 23, 2025, at the Goodyear Recreational Center, where residents attended the workshop and were engaged with the Consultant and city staff. An additional community workshop was held on May 5, 2026, at City Hall’s Canyon Trails meeting room, and was attended by development community representatives interested in learning about the proposed regulations.
Staff held work sessions with the Planning and Zoning (P&Z) Commission and Council in October 2025 and November 2025, respectively. Topics discussed at the initial work session included expanding allowances for temporary signage in multi-family zoning districts, increasing noticing requirements, reviewing permitted and use permit uses, and creating middle housing opportunities in single-family zoning districts.
Staff held additional work sessions with the P&Z Commission and Council in March 2026, at which staff presented proposed regulations for BESS and data centers. Other topics were also included in the work session staff report such as an arts district overlay, and drive-through and parking regulations. Based on the feedback received at these work sessions, staff and the Consultant modified proposed regulation language. The final revised proposed regulations are being presented in work sessions to the P&Z Commission and Council in June 2026 for additional feedback.
Shortly thereafter, staff began working with the Consultant on an update to the Zoning Ordinance to further improve standards and support high-quality development throughout the city. Because the last comprehensive Zoning Ordinance update occurred in 1999, staff identified several items to address, including bringing the ordinance up to current standards, improving user experience, refining outdated development standards, expanding housing options to promote housing diversity, clarifying definitions, adding uses not previously included in the ordinance, and revising language to ensure compliance with state and federal law.
Together, these updates help streamline the development process while maintaining high-quality standards. Additionally, the Zoning Ordinance Rewrite is a Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Strategic Plan action item and supports the city's intent to conserve and promote public health, safety, and general welfare (A.R.S. §9-462.01) and the General Plan's Livable and Connected LC-5 goal of creating a community that distinguishes itself through high-quality character and design.
The comprehensive Zoning Ordinance update process kicked-off in January 2025. A community workshop was held on April 23, 2025, at the Goodyear Recreational Center, where residents attended the workshop and were engaged with the Consultant and city staff. An additional community workshop was held on May 5, 2026, at City Hall’s Canyon Trails meeting room, and was attended by development community representatives interested in learning about the proposed regulations.
Staff held work sessions with the Planning and Zoning (P&Z) Commission and Council in October 2025 and November 2025, respectively. Topics discussed at the initial work session included expanding allowances for temporary signage in multi-family zoning districts, increasing noticing requirements, reviewing permitted and use permit uses, and creating middle housing opportunities in single-family zoning districts.
Staff held additional work sessions with the P&Z Commission and Council in March 2026, at which staff presented proposed regulations for BESS and data centers. Other topics were also included in the work session staff report such as an arts district overlay, and drive-through and parking regulations. Based on the feedback received at these work sessions, staff and the Consultant modified proposed regulation language. The final revised proposed regulations are being presented in work sessions to the P&Z Commission and Council in June 2026 for additional feedback.
STAFF ANALYSIS
The proposed Zoning Ordinance update addresses the primary goals of enhancing opportunities for housing diversity, clarifying definitions, updating existing uses and development standards, and introducing new uses. In addition, the Zoning Ordinance has been reorganized and modernized with tables and graphics to improve the user experience. The complete draft Zoning Ordinance is provided in Attachment A. Highlights of the major changes include the following:
The comprehensive Zoning Ordinance update aims to protect our residents’ health, safety, and welfare by establishing land use classifications, dividing the city into districts, and imposing regulations on land use, building dimensions, and open space among other regulations.
With the P&Z Commission and Council feedback, staff and the Consultant will finalize the Zoning Ordinance Update, which is expected to be presented to the P&Z Commission on July 1, 2026, for an adoption recommendation and to the Council on July 6, 2026, for approval.
- BESS
- Special Use Permit in Light Industrial Park (I-1) and General Industrial Park (I-2) zoning districts
- Minimum 330-foot separation from residential uses
- Can be reduced to 150 feet when supported by a plumes study through the Special Use Permit review and approval process
- Minimum 150-foot separation from commercial zoning districts
- Minimum 100-foot separation from Business Park District and other I-1 or I-2 zoning districts
- Worked with Fire Marshall to refer to NFPA for life safety items and maintain additional protections as necessary
- Considerations for emergency response and decommissioning
- See Attachment B, BESS Handout, for a list of recommended regulations and a comparison with regulations in other jurisdictions
- Data centers
- Permitted in Light Industrial Park (I-1) and General Industrial Park (I-2) zoning districts with conditions
- Minimum 300-foot separation distance from residential uses
- Considerations of water, electric power and noise
- See Attachment C, Data Centers Handout, for a list of recommended regulations and a comparison with regulations in other jurisdictions
- Noticing Requirements
- Increasing the notification area from 500 feet to 600 feet for Use Permit, Special Use Permit and standard Rezone applications
- Further increasing the notification area from 500 feet to 1,200 feet for Planned Area Development applications
- Other modernizations
- Housing
- Permitting manufactured homes in the Agricultural (AG) and Agricultural Urban (AU) zoning districts
- Permitting attached product in the R2, R1-6, and R1-4 zoning districts
- Temporary signage
- Additional duration of temporary signs for more events such as construction, grand opening, new ownership, and special promotions for commercial, industrial, and mixed-used uses.
- Off-Street Parking
- Permit the reduction of required parking up to 25% for mixed-use walkable areas with support of a parking study
- Permit the reduction of required parking up to 25% for age restricted communities and affordable housing with support of a parking study and parking management plan
- Reduce medical office parking requirements from 1 space per 150 square feet of floor area to 1 space per 200 square feet of floor area
- Convenience uses
- Additional regulations provided for drive-through uses to prevent queuing and circulation issues
- Industrial height
- Industrial height increased from 50 feet to 70 feet to meet today’s industrial development while providing buffers from residential zoning districts
- Multi-family height
- Multi-family height may be increased from 30 feet to 40 feet, not to exceed three stories, in MF-28 zoning districts and from 40 feet to 60 feet, not to exceed four stories, in MF-24 zoning districts for developments that provide pitched roofs and lower building height adjacent to single-family residential and arterial roads
- Housing
The comprehensive Zoning Ordinance update aims to protect our residents’ health, safety, and welfare by establishing land use classifications, dividing the city into districts, and imposing regulations on land use, building dimensions, and open space among other regulations.
With the P&Z Commission and Council feedback, staff and the Consultant will finalize the Zoning Ordinance Update, which is expected to be presented to the P&Z Commission on July 1, 2026, for an adoption recommendation and to the Council on July 6, 2026, for approval.
Attachments
- Attachment A - Draft Zoning Ordinance
- Attachment B - BESS Handout
- Attachment C - Data Center Handout
- Staff Presentation