Surprise council approves Desert Moon development agreement and rezone with buffer stipulation
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Summary
The Surprise City Council approved a development agreement and rezoned about 40 acres at Pinnacle Peak and 220th Avenue from low-density to medium-density residential, imposing a 50-foot buffer at the site’s southeast corner and obliging the developer to share infrastructure costs.
The Surprise City Council on May 20 approved a development agreement and rezoning for Desert Moon Estates, a roughly 40-acre project at the southeast corner of Pinnacle Peak Road and 220th Avenue, clearing the way for up to 163 dwelling units under Luke Air Force Base’s graduated density concept.
The vote, taken after public comment and planning staff presentations, adopted resolution 2025-60 (development agreement) and ordinance 2025-11 (rezoning, case FS24-0080). The council also added a stipulation requiring a minimum 50-foot buffer from the site’s southeast corner to the nearest home.
The development agreement obligates the developer, Desert Moon 40, LLC, to fund or participate in key off-site infrastructure: building roadway connections and a proportionate share of a traffic signal at 220th Avenue and Sun Valley Parkway, and participating in regional water and wastewater capacity efforts and a recharge basin. The agreement makes the project responsible for required water and sewer facilities and for constructing adjacent half-streets and internal streets if the project proceeds before other nearby developments supply infrastructure.
Planning staff told the council the site sits largely within Luke Air Force Base’s 0–4 dwelling-units-per-acre overlay, with a small area in a 0–6 overlay; using those graduated-density caps, the maximum allowed units across the parcel is 163. Presentations showed a conceptual layout only; final lotting, open space and amenity placement will be decided at preliminary plat review.
Neighbors at the public hearing raised concerns about traffic, loss of rural character and proximity to equestrian residences. Michelle Staples, who said she lives near Dobie Road and 220th, told the council her community of roughly 70 rural-acre and semi-rural properties is already encircled by development and asked for buffers, walls and traffic routing that would steer nonresident traffic away from local rural streets. Kimberly Virostek, a resident at 220th and Hudson, said the conceptual plan appears denser than some neighbors expected and asked that egress favor 230th Street rather than routing more traffic onto Pinnacle Peak.
Developer representative Jeff Blythe said the rezoning captures about eight additional units over what would be possible under the current code and that the project includes a buffer and no access points to the south or east toward the rural properties. Blythe also said the development agreement secures an obligation to contribute to the Sun Valley Parkway signal and to other off-site improvements that would not attach to the property if it developed under existing zoning without the agreement.
Council members pressed staff and the developer on infrastructure timing and responsibilities. Planning staff confirmed that without the development agreement the site would still need to provide adjacent half-streets, water and sewer but would not be contractually required to contribute to the off-site signal or regional recharge facilities; the agreement creates those obligations. The council also discussed how right-of-way, retention and open-space requirements could affect the ultimate lot count.
After council discussion the motion to approve the development agreement and the rezoning with stipulations passed unanimously. The resolution and ordinance numbers are recorded in council minutes. Next steps are preliminary plat review, final engineering and the developer meeting the specified infrastructure obligations before construction.
