Flagstaff staff present three zoning scenarios to boost housing; parking, resource protections and HB 2721 highlighted

City planning staff presented a land-availability, suitability and zoning code "code concepts" report to the Flagstaff Housing Commission that models three distinct approaches to increasing housing supply while balancing sustainability and neighborhood protections.

Shelby Golty, planning director for the city, and Tiffany Antal, zoning manager, described three scenarios tested with prototype development models and spatial analysis: (1) optimize existing incentives so more projects use voluntary density and sustainability bonuses; (2) raise by-right densities while adding baseline sustainability standards and smaller parking minimums; and (3) maximize market-rate housing production by substantially raising by-right densities and lowering parking requirements, with fewer mandatory sustainability measures. Antal said the report’s prototype modeling applied those scenarios to different zone groups and examined revenue and cost impacts as well as likely greenhouse-gas implications.

Staff presented several specific code concepts commissioners will need to decide on, including allowing townhouses/duplexes/triplexes (the "missing middle" required by House Bill 2721), introducing floor-area-ratio (FAR) standards to limit building intensity, removing conditional-use requirements for single-use residential in commercial zones, and targeted parking reductions. Staff reported the spatial analysis showed scenario 3 would yield the highest net housing units, scenario 2 performed best on greenhouse-gas emissions per unit over 30 years, and scenario 1’s gains depend heavily on increased voluntary uptake of incentives.

Staff also flagged legal and practical constraints. They noted potential liability under Proposition 207 if code changes reduce property value without compensation, and said some existing rules — notably the resource protection overlay, winter parking ordinance (no overnight street parking for five months of the year) and the city’s fire-code-driven street-width standards — constrain how much density can be achieved without additional trade-offs or resources. Tiffany Antal explained the resource protection overlay currently requires about 50% preservation of natural resources for residential projects versus about 30% in commercial zones, and that narrow-street designs would require coordination and possibly additional resources from fire and public works.

Commissioners pressed staff on two recurring concerns: (1) whether lower development costs would actually result in lower sale prices for buyers; and (2) how changes would affect neighborhood character and parking. Commissioner Moses Milazzo urged the city to keep bargaining leverage via development agreements when possible; Commissioner Tyler Dunham and others asked about intensity limits and the relationship between unit size, occupancy and affordability. Council member House suggested commissioners make use of the public Council work session to state early viewpoints and bring written comments to staff. Staff requested written feedback before an early-February Council presentation and offered to return to the commission for a more focused workshop; commissioners suggested an extended "brown-bag" session to work through decision points in detail.

Votes at a glance: the only formal vote recorded during the meeting was procedural — the commission approved the minutes of the Dec. 19, 2024, meeting on a motion by Commissioner Karen Flores, seconded by Commissioner Jackie Kellogg. The motion carried with all present voting "Aye." No other ordinances, code changes, or formal actions were adopted at this meeting.

Staff will use commission feedback to narrow the decision points and draft targeted code amendments; commissioners and staff agreed to additional outreach and an upcoming follow-up meeting to provide detailed comments before staff brings formal code amendments to Planning & Zoning and to City Council.