Public Hearing followed by discussion and possible action on any and all matters regarding Rezoning Case No. 2023-0214 and Ordinance No. 443. An Ordinance of the Mayor and City Council of the City of San Luis, Arizona, amending the conditions on Medium Density Residential (R1-6) zoning, as approved by Ordinance No. 400, on the property located between 6th Avenue and 8th Avenue north of Bienestar Estates No. 5 and south of the East Main Canal in San Luis, Arizona; repealing any conflicting provisions and providing for severability. (Jose A. Guzman, Director of Planning and Zoning)

A. Open Public Hearing
    1. Staff presentation
    2. Call to the Public on this item
B. Close Public Hearing
C. Action on Ordinance No. 443

A request by Edais Engineering, on behalf of Riedel Holdings, LLC, to amend the conditions on Medium-Density Residential (R1-6) zoning, as approved by Ordinance No. 400, for the property located between 6th Avenue and 8th Avenue north of Bienestar Estates No. 5 and south of the East Main Canal in San Luis, Arizona.

Ordinance No. 400 was approved by City Council on August 12, 2020, changing the zoning classification of 15.1 acres of Rural Area Residential (RA-10) to Medium-Density Residential (R1-6). The purpose of the R1-6 zoning district is to provide for detached single-residence development on urban-sized lots in areas where adequate public facilities and services are available.

This approval of Ordinance No. 400 was subject to the following conditions:

1. Rezoning is conditioned upon development of the land in a manner similar to the tentative lot layout submitted for this application. 
2. A full-length street shall be constructed between 6th Avenue and 8th Avenue as part of the development of this property. 
3. A traffic study is required, and the construction of any and all improvements as recommended by the said study, including but not limited to possible contributions to future roadway improvements such as traffic signals and/or canal crossings along 6th Avenue and 8th Avenue. 
4. Owner agrees to sign necessary improvement districts for the subdivisions of the rezoned parcel. Said districts include a street lighting improvement district, a community facilities district, and a parkway district pursuant to A.R.S §48-572.
5. Grading and erosion control shall comply with the International Building Code standards for all aspects of the development, including development of lots and the building of houses or other buildings.

This request is to seek the removal of condition No. 2, which reads as follows:

• "A full-length street shall be constructed between 6th Avenue and 8th Avenue as part of the development of this property."

The purpose of this request is that the applicant intends to develop a residential subdivision called La Esperanza Estates. The subdivision will be designed as a private gated community, and the conceptual plans show a total of 30 lots with access exclusively from 8th Avenue.

AGENCY REVIEW:
As required by State Statute, this request was referred to all relevant government agencies for review. We have received comments from the following agencies:

1. City of San Luis Public Works Department (6-30-23)
2. City of San Luis Fire Department (7-7-23)

As required by State Statute, staff sent notification letters to property owners within 300 feet of the proposed project (62 letters). The city has not received any other significant concerns or objections from the various review agencies or adjacent property owners.

CITIZEN REVIEW MEETING:
As required by State Statute and the City Code, a Citizen Review Meeting was held at City Hall on Thursday, June 29, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. The intent of this meeting was to allow the public to learn about the project, ask questions, and express any comments. Only one person from the public was present and had no comments or questions neither did the city receive any comments or questions prior to the meeting. The applicant has provided the information and materials necessary for the review of the rezoning request.

PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION: 
This item was presented to the Planning and Zoning Commission during their regular meeting of July 11, 2023, and recommended approval of the item with the conditions as presented by staff.  Staff recommended approval of the request with the following conditions: 

1. Applicant to address the following comment from City of San Luis Fire Department dated July 7, 2023:
   • The City of San Luis Fire Department has concerns with no second means of ingress/egress for this subdivision design. Without a second means of ingress/egress, our emergency response times to this proposed subdivision will be hampered, which does not serve the potential lot owners with the best emergency service the City of San Luis has to offer. Can the Developer work out a solution with the Yuma County Water Users to possibly create an emergency access from 6th Avenue to the west end of the proposed cul-de-sac? If this solution cannot be obtained, then the City of San Luis Fire Department will require fire hydrant spacing every three hundred feet and larger infrastructure for more water capacity.
2. Applicant to address the following comments from City of San Luis Public Works Department dated June 30, 2023:
   • Proposed plan does not meet our subdivision regulations Section 3.30. ("Cul-de-sac streets will serve no more than twenty (20) dwelling units and shall be no longer than 1,200 feet. Cul-de-sac design must comply with Yuma County Standards or such other standards as may be adopted by the City of San Luis, Arizona.")
   • Sewer shall be a gravity system connection.

APPLICANT REQUEST:
Due to cost constraints and the feasibility of the project, the applicant is proposing to continue with the request to remove the condition of the street connection. Rather than providing the road connection or emergency access through 6th Avenue, the applicant is looking to provide additional infrastructure to address the concerns of the Fire Department.  

In addition, the applicant is requesting a deviation from the Subdivision Regulation Section 3.30 regarding the number of dwelling units served by a cul-de-sac, requesting a change from 20 to 30 dwelling units.  

STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
The applicant has provided the information and material necessary for the review of the zoning request. The original purpose of the condition for the road connection was for emergency vehicle access and street connectivity. Since this development is proposed to be a gated community, the removal would be acceptable as long as it addresses the concerns of the Fire Department regarding the second access or additional infrastructure. The applicant is proposing to provide additional infrastructure since the proposed project is for a gated community. Rather than removing the condition, staff recommends amending the condition as follows:

• If the property is developed with public streets, the owner agrees that a full-length street shall be constructed between 6th Avenue and 8th Avenue as part of the development of this property. If developed as a private gated community, the owner agrees to provide a 10” water line and fire hydrants at least 300 feet and provide a 54-foot wide paved private street.

This will ensure that the project is developed as a private gated community, and if the developer chooses to develop the land with public streets, then a road connection will be required. Additionally, a condition shall be added to address the sewer gravity system connection, and if City Council agrees to the Subdivision Request deviation, staff recommends adding the following language as part of the conditions:

• Since this will be a private gated community and the developer will provide additional infrastructure for emergency vehicles, City agrees to the deviation of Subdivision Regulations Section 3.30, allowing a cul-de-sac to serve 30 dwelling units instead of 20.
• Owner agrees to provide a gravity system connection for sewer services. 
• A Development Agreement must be approved in accordance with A.R.S. § 9-500.05 to include the previous conditions of the rezoning and the requested deviations from the Subdivision Regulations.

If Ordinance No. 443 is approved staff will work with the developer to present the development agreement to formalize the conditions of the rezoning prior to the approval of the subdivision plat. Therefore, the staff recommendation is to amend the conditions of the original rezoning by changing the language of condition number 2 and adding conditions number 6 and 7 as shown in bold below:

1. Rezoning is conditioned upon the development of the land in a manner similar to the tentative lot layout submitted for this application. 
2. If the property is developed with public streets, the owner agrees that a full-length street shall be constructed between 6th Avenue and 8th Avenue as part of the development of this property. If developed as a private gated community, the owner agrees to provide a 10” water line and fire hydrants at least 300 feet and provide a 54-foot wide paved private street.
3. A traffic study is required, and the construction of any and all improvements as recommended by the said study, including but not limited to possible contributions to future roadway improvements such as traffic signals and/or canal crossings along 6th Avenue and 8th Avenue. 
4. Owner agrees to sign necessary improvement districts for the subdivisions of the rezoned parcel. Said districts include a street lighting improvement district, a community facilities district, and a parkway district pursuant to A.R.S §48-572.
5. Grading and erosion control shall comply with the International Building Code standards for all aspects of the development, including the development of lots and the building of houses or other buildings.
6. Since this will be a private gated community and the developer will provide additional infrastructure for emergency vehicles, City agrees to the deviation of Subdivision Regulations Section 3.30, allowing a cul-de-sac to serve 30 dwelling units instead of the 20.
7. Owner agrees to provide a gravity system connection for sewer services. 
8. A Development Agreement must be approved in accordance with A.R.S. § 9-500.05, to include the previous conditions of the rezoning and the requested deviations from the Subdivision Regulations, prior to the approval of the subdivision final plat. 

A. I MOVE TO OPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING