Gilbert — Planning staff presented a study-session briefing on the Harvest Grove project, a 311-acre proposed development south of the Loop 202 near Mercy Gilbert Hospital, and asked the Planning Commission for input on a minor general plan amendment, a PAD rezone and a long list of requested deviations.

The applicant proposes to change about 179 of the 311 acres to a mix of regional commercial and multiple residential density bands, and to rezone the whole site to new PAD districts. Planning staff described the plan as proposing about 1,759 residential units across single-family detached and attached housing and multifamily parcels, and said the overall gross density would be about 5.64 dwelling units per acre (the portion north of the San Tan Character Area is roughly 7.75 du/acre; the portion inside the San Tan Character Area is about five du/acre).

Why it matters: The project would add a substantial amount of housing and change designated land uses inside the San Tan Character Area. Staff said the development’s average densities and several requested engineering and landscape deviations raise concerns about compliance with the character-area goals, traffic circulation, pedestrian safety and transitions between commercial, multifamily and single-family parcels.

Staff presentation and principal concerns

Planning staff (presenter identified as Keith, planning staff) summarized the proposed general-plan designation changes and the PAD layout. “The project site … is located South of the Loop 202 Freeway,” he told commissioners as he outlined the site’s relationship to nearby roads, Mercy Gilbert Hospital and the San Tan Character Area. Staff described the requested map changes: roughly 35 acres of regional commercial, about 43 acres at 3.5–5 du/acre, 38 acres at 5–8 du/acre, about 36 acres at 8–14 du/acre, roughly 17 acres at 14–25 du/acre and about 9.5 acres at 25–50 du/acre.

Staff also presented the proposed zoning layout and a development plan that includes a neighborhood shopping center at the northwest corner (Germaine Road and Val Vista Drive), multiple multifamily parcels and a central collector spine through the site. Staff said the applicant proposes approximately 1,759 total residential units: roughly 1,033 single-family attached/row‑type units, 190 single‑family attached (SFA), 480 single‑family detached (SFD) and additional lots in SF6 and SF8 categories; staff listed approximate lot counts and sizes in supporting tables.

Staff highlighted several technical and policy concerns recorded in the staff report:
- Consistency with the San Tan Character Area vision: staff said the proposed densities — particularly inside the San Tan Character Area — exceed the area’s guiding target (about 2–3.5 dwelling units per acre) and are “nearly double” adjacent development densities.
- Collector alignment and connectivity: the developer proposes moving the Coronado collector from the project’s eastern boundary into a central location. Staff said Coronado is shown in the town’s Transportation Master Plan and is intended to provide east–west circulation and future access for properties east of the site; relocating it could concentrate traffic on the proposed central collector and create cut‑through and safety issues, particularly during Perry High School peak periods.
- Collector frontage design and on‑street parallel parking: staff objected to parallel parking adjacent to bike lanes on a collector cross section, saying the cross‑section creates conflicts between bicyclists and cars entering/exiting parallel parking stalls and raises safety and throughput concerns. The town’s transportation representative told commissioners that “our standards don't allow for parallel parking on collector roads due to the volume of traffic.”
- Access redundancy and relief: staff identified limited reliever access along the eastern boundary, and raised concern that many neighborhood pods would rely on the single internal collector for ingress/egress.
- Open space and active‑space distribution: the applicant proposes about 78 acres of open space (roughly 26.4% of the site) and a 2.83‑acre central park, but staff said some residential locations do not meet the guideline that homes be within 880 feet of an active open‑space amenity.
- Code deviations: staff listed multiple requested deviations including reduced setbacks and landscape buffers between commercial and residential, reduced open space on the multifamily‑high parcel (proposing about 27% where 40–45% may be required), reductions in minimum lot area on some SFA/SFD parcels, and a reduced entrance throat depth at one commercial driveway (80 feet to 60 feet). Staff stated the applicant has already reduced some deviations following town review but that work remains.

Commissioner and public questions

Commissioners asked staff and transportation staff to explain the basis for their concerns and whether alternative cross sections or multi‑use paths could reduce the risk. Transportation staff said collector roads are intended to carry higher volumes and that parallel parking on collectors is not standard practice in the town; they recommended consideration of separated multi‑use paths instead of bike lanes directly adjacent to parallel parking.

Commissioners also requested comparative analyses showing how the Harvest Grove densities would compare to other large properties inside the San Tan Character Area. Staff said GIS staff were working on an analysis of existing properties and densities across the character area.

Members of the public spoke during the regular‑meeting public comment period. Resident Cody Burr said he lives about a quarter‑mile southeast of the proposed Harvest Grove site and urged the commission to re‑examine the proposal’s consistency with the San Tan Character Area and the town’s 2020 general plan: “Where are we gonna draw the line?” he asked, arguing the area was intended to preserve part of Gilbert’s agrarian character and that repeated conversions of ag land had already reduced the mapped acreage in the character area.

Developer response

Applicant representative Bridal Ray (address stated in the record) attended and answered commissioner questions. Ray said the design team had tried to respond to similar prior development patterns, increase some building setbacks in places and incorporate traffic‑calming features along the central spine. He said the alleys and alley‑loaded homes would have greater than 10‑foot setbacks in some locations and that the team had added a low fence to separate public and private spaces where homes front the collector.

Next steps and Commission guidance

No formal action was taken during the study session; commissioners provided direction and asked staff and the applicant to return with additional information. Commissioners repeatedly requested a comparative density analysis across the San Tan Character Area, a traffic/circulation comparative analysis that compares the Coronado location to the developer’s proposed center alignment, and refined cross‑section drawings showing the proposed collector compared side‑by‑side with the town’s standard cross section. Commissioners asked the applicant to re‑examine the number and location of collector access points along the eastern boundary and to narrow requested deviations or demonstrate compensating design quality measures where deviations remain.

As the chair closed the Harvest Grove discussion, he invited the applicant and staff to continue to work with commissioners on a refined application before any public hearing or formal vote.

Ending note

The project remains in the study‑session phase and will return to the commission only after the applicant provides additional comparative traffic and density analyses, revised cross sections and a narrowed set of deviations or demonstration of offsetting design features.

Quotes used in this article are drawn verbatim from the meeting transcript and are attributed to the speakers who made them.