Fountain Hills council approves full-depth reconstruction of Palomino Boulevard after resident pushback

The Fountain Hills Town Council voted 6–1 to approve a full‑depth reconstruction of Palomino Boulevard, choosing a longer‑lasting but more time‑consuming option over a cheaper chip‑seal treatment.

The decision follows more than an hour of public comment and staff presentations in which residents described concerns about mailboxes, landscaping, driveway profiles and extended construction disruption. Staff estimated the full reconstruction would cost about $5.4 million; the chip‑seal preservation option was estimated at roughly $950,000.

Why it matters: Palomino is a heavily used neighborhood arterial in Fountain Hills. Council members and staff framed the choice as a tradeoff between a shorter project that would preserve the existing pavement structure for several years and a full rebuild that officials said would provide a longer service life but require a lengthier construction schedule and greater short‑term disruption.

Public comment and staff briefing

Several residents urged council to limit the scope to repaving or preservation, not curb relocations or new sidewalks. Chris Bresler, a Palomino resident, said the neighborhood’s “overwhelming outcry” favored a simpler repave and that residents wanted “to minimize the disruption to our lives.” Pamela Peat, also a resident, told the council the neighborhood’s “key homeowner concerns” — including matching landscape rock and driveway styles — “would be eliminated” if the project were limited to repaving.

Town staff described the engineering options and construction effects. A staff presentation noted the Palomino right‑of‑way is roughly 84 feet wide and that the current asphalt surface extends roughly 60 feet from curb to curb. Staff said construction will remove and replace the structural pavement section across the roadway for either the narrowed or full‑width options; the main differences are whether the project pulls curb lines inward to create future sidewalk space and whether mailboxes would be relocated behind new curb lines.

“Estimated funding for the project is about $5,400,000,” staff said during the presentation. Council members heard that curb‑pulling and sidewalk preparation would risk moving or rebuilding some of the 137 individual mailboxes along the corridor and would lengthen the work and the time residents would be without the current right‑of‑way configuration.

Council debate and vote

Council members debated three main approaches shown by staff: 1) full reconstruction with new curb alignments and future sidewalk allowance (the most invasive and highest cost), 2) full reconstruction within the current pavement width (rebuild curb to curb), and 3) a chip‑seal preservation treatment (least costly, shortest schedule). Several council members said the cheaper preservation approach would be only a temporary fix and could require repeat treatments over decades.

Councilmember Skillegorn moved to approve a narrowed option; during debate he amended his motion to the full reconstruction within the existing pavement width (the council’s final selection). Vice Mayor Larabee seconded the amended motion. The motion passed 6–1.

What council directed next

Staff said the selected full‑reconstruction approach will require more detailed design, coordination with utilities and postal service guidance on mailbox placement. Officials estimated the reconstruction work could take roughly 9–12 months from start to finish in the project area; the less invasive preservation option was estimated to take several weeks.

Staff also noted prior local pilot projects using chip‑seal and cape coatings had performed well in some neighborhood streets, and that using the cheaper treatment on Palomino would free funds to address other roads with high backlog. Nonetheless, the council majority chose the deeper reconstruction to reduce long‑term maintenance needs and to obtain a longer service life for Palomino.

Ending

Councilmembers and staff said they will provide residents with a construction schedule and additional public notices before work begins and will aim to limit impacts where possible. The council did not set a firm start date at the meeting; staff said they will return with schedule and contract details as design and procurement proceed.