Advisory group reviews Land Use, Growth and Development chapter; zoning, inholdings and water top concerns

Advisory members reviewed the Land Use, Growth and Development draft, questioned mapping and statutory requirements, and raised concerns about water availability, inholdings, aggregate mining mapping and who will pay for infrastructure as development increases.

Staff stated an important planning fact plainly: “Coconino County does not have a future land use map.” The advisory group discussed how the county instead relies on zoning, character descriptions and, in some localities, area plans (for example, the Belmont area plan) to guide future development and rezoning decisions. Staff said the draft preserves character descriptions tied to zoning and that those descriptions are used when the county evaluates a rezoning application.

Mapping private land and ranch parcels

Advisory members asked staff to produce a clearer overlay showing parcels used for ranching. In the draft maps staff presented, private land comprised a relatively small slice of the county — staff said…