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Commission recommends approval for All Things Metal industrial permit despite neighborhood noise and well concerns
Summary
The commission voted 8-1 to recommend approval of MCP240002, a military compatibility permit and plan of development for a phased structural steel fabrication facility in the Whitman area; public commenters raised concerns about noise, water wells and unpermitted activity on the site.
The Maricopa County Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval, 8-1, of MCP240002 on Thursday for a phased structural steel fabrication site proposed at the southwest corner of 190th Avenue and Jomax Road in the Whitman area.
Nick, county planning staff, told commissioners the development is roughly 27 acres, that Luke Air Force Base issued a Use Compatibility and Consistency Determination (UCCD) in June 2024, and that staff considered the project compatible with surrounding land uses and Luke’s operations. Staff recommended the commission adopt a motion recommending approval to the Board of Supervisors subject to conditions A through H in the staff report.
Jack Gilmore of Gilmore Planning and Landscape Architecture represented the owner, All Things Metal, and said the request covers phase 1: a 20,400-square-foot building with attached covered storage yards and outdoor storage. Tim Rock, owner of All Things Metal, told commissioners the operation will be a structural steel fabricator and said fabrication activities would be indoors once the buildings are constructed. “We actually do not use water in the course of our fabrication,” Rock said; he said water on-site is intended for dust control and fire suppression storage, and that the applicant is arranging a 200,000-gallon water-storage tank to meet fire marshal requirements.
Several nearby residents opposed the project during public comment. Jessica Peters said construction activity on the site has disturbed neighbors since November and expressed concern about increased water use and noise, saying the operators showed “no common decency or common courtesy” in how they have used the site. Carol Vanderback, who identified herself as Peters’s 90-year-old grandmother, said she also heard the noise and supported Peters’s statements.
Commissioners also discussed existing compliance issues. County staff confirmed the property was the subject of zoning compliance enforcement and that the owner entered a compliance agreement; the commission was not being asked to adjudicate enforcement penalties but to consider whether the land use is appropriate under the Military/Ancillary Military Facility (MAMF) overlay and associated requirements.
A roll-call vote recorded eight yes votes and one no (Commissioner Toma) to recommend approval. The file now proceeds to the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors for final action; subsequent phases and any changes to the plan may require additional Board review and approvals.
