At the Tempe City Council’s April 3 call to the public, several residents urged the council not to approve rezoning of the Shalimar Golf Course for high-density, primarily rental housing, and asked council members to investigate persistent discrepancies between project renderings presented during approvals and the buildings that are subsequently constructed.

“We cannot imagine what the potential of a thousand cars passing by the house multiple times a day will look like,” said Shawna Mathias, a Tempe resident, speaking against rezoning of the Shalimar Golf Course and describing concerns about traffic, children’s safety and neighborhood character. “If the city council approves the rezoning, it will destroy the community that I love.”

Michael Clark of Gilbert told the council about a federal/IRS-era program he identified as PCMP that he said can enhance employee benefits and could provide about $1,400,000 in savings to the city budget with no cost to employees; he said he and proponents would route the program through HR, the city manager and finance for consideration.

Deborah Zajac, a 30-year North Tempe resident, raised a separate concern about developer renderings not reflecting completed work on recent projects. She cited the Banyan/North Bend County Island project and the Smith Rio/Tempe Market Station as examples where what was constructed, in her view, differs from renderings shown at approval. Councilmembers offered to follow up: a councilmember and staff asked to meet with Zajac to review her concerns in person.

Erica Gregory, who said she used to work at the Shalimar Golf Course, spoke about wildlife in the area and how an apartment complex would affect local ducks and foxes. “The wildlife in there is a big thing to me,” she said.

What happened next: The mayor and council acknowledged the speakers and the limits of the public-comment portion under the Arizona open meeting law. Council members and staff offered to meet with residents who requested follow-up; one councilmember asked staff to arrange a one-on-one meeting with Zajac to review the rendering questions.

No council action on rezoning was taken at the April 3 meeting; the public-comment period closed after the listed speaker cards were exhausted.