Commission approves 510-unit West Fillmore High Street multifamily site plan with sustainability features

The Planning and Zoning Commission voted to approve the West Fillmore High Street multifamily site plan (case PLZSP-24-017), a proposed 510-unit garden-style apartment community on roughly 18 acres east of Verrado Way and south of Summit Community Church. Approval is subject to conditions A through Q and remains contingent on required technical permits and floodplain approvals.

Mandy Woods, senior planner with Development Services, presented the site plan and described the project as a 510-unit, three-story (some two-story) garden-style multifamily development with nine residential buildings, a centralized clubhouse and pool area, community gardens and a dog park. Woods said the proposed density is approximately 28.5 dwelling units per acre and noted the site plan provides about 24% open space (15% usable open space) and exceeds the code’s parking and alternative-vehicle infrastructure requirements by supplying 45 EV charging stations and making over 400 spaces “EV infrastructure ready.”

Katie Rounds of the Cadence Group, representing property owner High Street Ventures, described the developer’s emphasis on energy efficiency and environmental design. Rounds said the community aims for a target of fully net-zero amenity spaces and a future potential for net-zero residential units. “Our future West Fillmore site developed in the Buckeye community is set to be the 1 of the first of its kind with a goal to be fully net 0 with the amenity spaces and residential units,” Rounds said.

Woods and the applicant said the design includes pedestrian connections to the regional trail (Tuthill Wash), stormwater-minded landscaping (rain gardens and harvested water for community gardens), shaded parking canopies with solar potential, and detailed building elevations using a Southwest contemporary palette and material palette (stucco, brick veneer, metal accents). The applicant also noted phasing that responds to floodplain constraints; part of the eastern parcel lies in the floodplain and the applicant is pursuing conditional letter of map revision (CLOMR) and FEMA permitting as needed.

Commissioners asked about access: the site will have a single full-movement entry from Fillmore Street plus an emergency-access easement through the adjacent Summit Community Church property. Staff said queuing for the gated entry accommodates at least three queued vehicles and that the project team has coordinated with city engineering and transportation staff on intersection and potential reimbursement agreements for off-site improvements that future adjacent properties would share.

After a public-hearing period with no speakers, a motion to approve the site plan subject to conditions A–Q was moved, seconded and carried.