Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Transportation And Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Florence council schedules strategic planning session, pushes for clearer PUD, traffic and transportation planning
Summary
Council directed staff to prepare a focused planning session on transportation, planned unit developments, development streamlining and infrastructure prioritization. Council proposed Feb. 10 for a joint work session, asked for project‑level PUD status, traffic impact study triggers, and steps to pursue funding and intergovernmental coordination.
The Florence Town Council agreed to move forward with a joint planning session to set priorities for transportation, planned unit developments (PUDs), and streamlining the development process.
Mr. Walls and AJ Monroe, director of community development, presented the work session topics the council asked staff to address: transportation, PUD inventories/status, expedited development processes, and prioritization of major projects. Vice Chair DeRosa of the Planning and Zoning Commission urged council to treat the town’s general plan as an actionable document and to use a strategic session to set explicit expectations for developers. “You currently have 94,000 rooftops that have been in some stage between 02/2004 and 02/2010 that could come online,” Vice Chair DeRosa said, warning that roads and infrastructure will be insufficient if the pipeline is not managed.
Council members sought clearer, project‑level information. Vice Mayor Adam asked what triggers a traffic impact study, noting studies sometimes are requested but not always provided or visible to the public. Council member Bucielata and others requested a map‑level overview of subdivisions and a schedule tying infrastructure improvements to development phasing, citing Hunt Highway, Attaway, Felix Road and Arizona Farms as priorities. Council members also urged better interjurisdictional coordination with Pinal County and neighboring Coolidge to leverage funding and align road projects.
Council agreed to a proposed date for a strategic planning session: staff recommended February 10 for a joint meeting of council, planning and zoning and other departments to define what staff should deliver and which short‑term actions council wants prioritized. Staff will prepare flowcharts showing the planning and PUD review process, a pipeline list of PUDs and development agreements including status and commitments, the transportation plan and short‑/long‑term priorities, and options to make projects shovel‑ready for grants.
Council also directed staff to return with information on development impact fees, CIP references in RCAs and whether certain consent agenda thresholds should be adjusted. Members asked staff to make publicly accessible a consolidated PUD/status list and to coordinate grant‑readiness work for shovel‑ready projects.
No formal ordinance was adopted during the work session. The council emphasized urgency on transportation priorities and asked for clear deliverables ahead of the February work session.
