Mesa planning board approves consent agenda, advancing six zoning and site-plan cases

The City of Mesa Planning and Zoning Board on Dec. 11, 2024 approved its consent agenda in a single motion, advancing meeting minutes and six zoning and site-plan cases, and heard a staff announcement that Mesa won a social-embeddedness award from Arizona State University.

Board members approved minutes from the Nov. 13 and Nov. 25, 2024 meetings and voted to move forward on the following items on the consent agenda: ZON24007A2 (Fairfield Hotel), ZON24822 (The Knox), ZON221264 (Power Retail Development), ZON23691 (Medina Station), ZON24-405 (skilled nursing facility), and ZON24731 (88 Southern Townhomes) along with associated preliminary plat PZ24-230 for the townhomes. Staff recommended approval of each case with conditions; the board approved the consent agenda by a single motion and voice vote.

The consent agenda items were read into the record and acted on together; none of the items were discussed individually during the meeting and there were no public-comment blue cards. The board’s action advances the listed applications to the next step in the city review and permitting process.

Key items read into the record on the consent agenda included: - Fairfield Hotel (ZON24007A2): A site-plan review to allow a hotel on about 2.2 acres located roughly 1,600 feet west of the northwest corner of Signal Butte Road and the U.S. 60 Freeway on the south side of Hampton Avenue. Staff recommended approval with conditions. - The Knox (ZON24822): A site-plan review and special-use permit for commercial recreation and industrial development on about 6.2 acres located roughly 3,000 feet east of the northeast corner of South Power Road and East Ray Road. Staff recommended approval with conditions, including a special condition read aloud: “prior to the issuance of a certificate of occupancy for Parcel 30 Four-thirty-forty 3. All parking areas within Parcel 30 Four-thirty-fifty 7 must be constructed.” - Power Retail Development (ZON221264): Rezoning and major site-plan modification for a multi-tenant commercial building with a drive-thru on a 2+ acre site south of South Power Road and East Williams Field Road; staff recommended approval with conditions. - Medina Station (ZON23691): Rezoning from agricultural to limited commercial with a Planned Area Development overlay, council-use permit and site-plan review for a mixed-use development at the southeast corner of East Southern Avenue and South Signal Butte Road; staff recommended approval with conditions. - Skilled nursing facility (ZON24-405): A major site-plan modification, special-use permit and amendment to conditions of approval for case Z89-9 to allow a skilled nursing facility on about 2.1 acres near North Higley Road and East Main Street; staff recommended approval with conditions and amendments to conditions 1, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 of the earlier case. - 88 Southern Townhomes (ZON24731) and preliminary plat PZ24-230: Rezoning to RM-2 with a PAD and a major site-plan modification to allow townhomes on roughly 4+ acres near South Ellsworth Road and East Southern Avenue; staff recommended approval with conditions. The rezoning is listed as a companion case to the preliminary plat.

Procedure and vote: Chair called for a motion to approve the consent agenda as read; a board member moved and another seconded. The chair announced the consent agenda “passes unanimously with everyone here today.” Montez was excused from the meeting. The items were handled as consent — read and approved together — and no separate deliberation or public testimony on individual items was recorded.

Staff announcement: After the consent vote, a City of Mesa planning staff member announced that Mesa received an award from Arizona State University related to the city’s “Asian experience” work in last year’s general plan. The staff member said, “We did win a award with ASU for the Asian experience that we've done last year, part of the general plan. So we won the president's award for social embeddedness. So, Jeff and I went and met with the ASU team and received that award last Friday.”

The board adjourned after the staff announcement. No further public comment or substantive discussion on the consent items is recorded in the hearing transcript.