A planning consultant representing an entity affiliated with the Tanenbaum River Valley presented to Oro Valley Town Council on Oct. 15 an overview of previous work and next steps for possible annexation and entitlement of roughly 880 acres of State Trust land that straddles Tangerine Road.

Consultant Bill Longacre (WLB Group / LJA) reviewed background: the property was studied eight years ago and received a “master plan community” general-plan designation for the northern portion; previous work included a draft specific plan, Saguaro inventory, and preliminary ESLO mapping. Longacre said the State Land Department’s current approach relies more on jurisdictions and their consultant teams to prepare entitlements rather than State Lands doing the full entitlement work.

Longacre and staff outlined the legal/administrative steps the town would face: initial dialogue with the State Land Department; the state’s Selection Board (governor, attorney general, treasurer) must reauthorize annexation of trust land; a Planning Authorization Letter (PAL) from the State Land Department; selection of a consultant team (land use planner, traffic, environmental, fiscal/market analysis, archeology and survey); preparation of a PAD or specific plan; completion of a secondary/master-plan process addressing traffic, drainage, water and open space; and then public hearings and, if successful, the property would be set for auction. Longacre estimated a minimum of about three years from reengagement to auction and additional time to construction.

Council members pressed on three issues repeatedly: water supply, environmental constraints (saguaro and other protected native vegetation, washes and ESLO mapping), and the economic feasibility of attracting retail (to offset the cost of extended services). Town water staff and the consultant said Oro Valley is the logical water provider and that prior studies estimated roughly 1,000 acre-feet per year might be needed at full buildout; that estimate would need updating and depends on the eventual land use and any post-2026 Colorado River allocation changes.

Council members and staff said they wanted more specific feasibility work before committing town resources: updated fiscal/market analyses that test whether retail could realistically locate on the site, updated water-resource modeling under conservative Colorado River allocation scenarios, and revised ESLO mapping using town inventories of saguaros and ironwood. Council members suggested the town could focus on only the southern portion of the parcel if that made economic or planning sense.

Longacre said the State Land Department typically expects to recoup entitlement costs when parcels are sold; he said the town’s expenditure on entitlement work would be eligible for reimbursement at sale. However he and councilors cautioned that the process and timelines are subject to state staffing and policy changes and that any agreement should seek to protect the town from political or administrative reversals. No formal action was taken; the council directed staff to return with targeted feasibility steps, including water-supply modeling, updated environmental mapping, and a market/feasibility study.