Oro Valley planning commission approves model-home architecture for Naranja Trails subdivision

The Oro Valley Planning and Zoning Commission on Tuesday approved model-home architecture for the Naranja Trails subdivision, a 64-lot residential development south of Naranja Drive a quarter mile west of North First Avenue.

“Members of the commission, as you all know, my name is Michael Spade for the record, principal planner with the town of Oro Valley,” Michael Spade said during the presentation, summarizing staff’s recommendation that the designs meet the River’s Edge Planned Area Development (PAD) and the town zoning code. Applicant representatives described the plans and materials to the commission.

The applicant requested approval of model-home architecture for lots 1–61; three lots in the southern portion of the subdivision will be built later as custom homes by the original property owner. The proposal covers four single-story plans offered in three architectural styles — Spanish Colonial, ranch/territorial and craftsman — with nine exterior color schemes and multiple roof and stone options. The builder said plans are 45 feet wide (plan series labeled “1-45”), include three-car tandem garages on most plans and range up to about 2,700 square feet for the largest layout, which the applicant described as a five-bedroom plan with a “teen room.”

“We’re really excited about this community. It has been a long process for us. So we’re looking forward to pulling permits and getting some rooftops out there,” the applicant representative said during the presentation.

The proposal includes optional side‑load garages on wider lots and “return” walls that the applicant said will typically extend roughly 12–17 feet from the front elevation (they said the exact distance varies by lot conditions such as utility locations). Staff told commissioners the model elevations incorporate materials and colors common to the Sonoran Desert and draw visual elements from surrounding neighborhoods in the River’s Edge PAD.

Commissioners asked about lot setbacks, density, how exterior colors and elevations are assigned to individual lots, and whether the designs would appear too similar to nearby subdivisions. Staff said the subdivision’s development plan and final plat had already been approved (the final plat was approved in 2024; the conceptual site plan in 2022) and that the model-home architecture application is a design-level review consistent with the PAD and zoning code. The applicant said exterior choices for each lot are controlled by the builder to avoid adjacent duplication and to accelerate move-in timelines once homes reach a late construction stage.

A motion to approve the model-home architecture passed 7–0. The approval was made based on the finding that the request complies with the design standards and guidelines in the town zoning code.